The Wants of the Few
by smm
Summary: Gracia leaves Elysia with Riza to go shopping for Elysia's Birthday, can Riza handle the 4yr old? When Gracia happens across Roy on her outing they have an interesting discussion about families...is there a real reason behind Roy's reluctance to settle
1. Separation Anxiety

The Wants of the Few

Author's Note: Spoilers to episode 25. There'll be Roy/Riza and maybe a few moments _seeming_ like Roy/Gracia.

Chapter 1 – Separation Anxiety

"It should only be for a few hours Riza." Gracia said to the officer.

Riza smiled compassionately, "No problem. Elysia is always welcome here." The lieutenant felt sorry for the now single woman. The death of Maes weighed heavily on his wife and even heavier on their daughter. It'd been nearly a year and tomorrow was going to be Elysia's first birthday without her father. Gracia needed time to prepare and buy presents, so she'd asked if Hawkeye would baby-sit for a few hours. Naturally, she said yes. Gracia knelt down to face her child in the eyes.

"Sweetie," she said Elysia, "I've got to leave for a little while. I need to visit some friends."

Her daughter frowned, "Why can't I go? I don't want you to leave."

"You can't honey…I've got to go talk to some people, and it'll be a lot of big people talk. You'll be bored-"

"I want to _go_." She said, her voice starting to whine.

"You can't. I have errands to run-" Suddenly she was interrupted by her child's body plowing into her own. Elysia was hugging her tightly, hanging on for dear life.

"Don't _leave_!" she pleaded again. "You might not come back."

Gracia sighed, and tears threatened her eyes. "I promise I'll come back. I'd never leave you forever." Elysia tightened her grip on her mother. "You remember Miss Riza don't you, Elysia? She's just going to take care of you for a little while." Elysia cautiously looked over her shoulder at Riza and turned back quickly to her mother. Riza could see this wasn't working. She was going to have to intervene.

"Elysia, I think Black Hayate is in the backyard. And I know he's been really looking forward to you visiting him." Riza had gotten the girl's attention. Elysia looked at the woman with a little intrigue. Riza continued, "He hardly ever gets a chance to play fetch anymore…and I remember how good you were at throwing—"

"Okay…" Elysia said. Gracia could see that her little one wasn't crazy about her leaving, but at least she was willing to stay. The child unlatched her grip from her mother and walked slowly over to stand by Riza. Hawkeye looked down at the child, "Do you remember where the backyard is?" Elysia nodded, her frown dissolving a bit and went into the house and out the back door. The two women watched until she was gone.

Riza looked back at her guest. "How are you doing?" she asked sincerely.

Gracia sighed a tired sigh, "Things have been hard…and just when I started to think we were going to start getting on with our life—I can't blame her for missing him. I miss him too. It's just that he always made such a big deal out of these things. Elysia's birthday was always a big deal to him. He always stressed how important it was to be together…" Riza listened quietly. "I don't know what to do anymore Riza. I put on a brave face for her, but when she puts on that pleading voice, I know she can see right through me. Do you know that there hasn't been one night that she hasn't come into my room in the middle of the night to make sure I was still here? I'm sure she's afraid she's going to lose me too. I can't help but worry about her."

Riza looked at her friend, she could see the worry lines creasing her forehead. "Well you won't have to worry about her while she's here. I'll keep her so busy she won't even have time to realize you're gone." Gracia just smiled and waved good bye as she started walking down the street toward the shops in town. "Don't worry…"Riza said under her breath. "I can do this." As Riza turned back inside, her own words hit her ears again…was she saying them to reassure Gracia…or herself?

* * *

It gets better, I promise ;)


	2. Hello Soldier

The Wants of the Few

Author's Notes: One of the few chapters I've written for **any** story that actually made me cry.

Chapter 2 – Hello Soldier

Gracia carried the heavy bags down the street. Her arms were beginning tire. '_I should have asked Riza if I could borrow her car_.' She thought as she started to walk by Ziemlich Park. She slowed and stopped in front of the entrance. Memories of Maes rushed back to her. They'd come here on their first date. He'd been so cute trying to impress her by climbing a tree. She smiled as she remembered how he fell flat on his back within a few moments. It was funny until they realized he'd twisted his ankle. She'd helped him waddle over to a little park bench and they laughed about how ridiculous the whole thing was. '_I wonder if the bench is still there_.' She thought, her heart longing to see her beloved husband again. Before she realized it she was already walking into the park toward the bench. Gracia was stunned to see that not only was the bench still there, but there was someone familiar sitting on it.

"Hello soldier." She said to him. It wasn't something she'd usually say, but somehow it fit. His shoulders were rounded and hunched and they looked as if they were holding the weight of the world on them. This wasn't a man, it was a soldier, a servant of the country. His eyes were squinted as he stared out into the air in front of him. He looked as if he were trying to see something that wasn't quite there. He didn't look at her as he said, "Hello Gracia."

"Mind if I take a seat Roy?"

He shook his head coming out of his trance and moved over on the bench. "No of course not. Go ahead." She sat down silently and they both sat there in the quiet as they watched a few children playing in a sandbox. The silence engulfed the two and Gracia searched for something to say. Before she could think of something Roy spoke, "So what are you doing here?"

"I was out shopping for Elysia's birthday…its tomorrow you know." She replied. He nodded, never taking his eyes from the children in the sandbox.

"Where is she?" after a pause, he turned to face her, "Elysia I mean."

"Oh, Riza was kind enough to baby-sit for me today." He only nodded at the answer and turned his gaze back to the children in the park. After watching the children some more he spoke again, "Hughes really loved being a father."

"Yes." Gracia responded, smiling a little at the memory.

"He was a great father." Roy offered.

She nodded. "He was a great husband." The quiet threatened to overtake them again, but Gracia fought it. "He talked about you all the time Roy." Roy said nothing, but redirected his attention to a young couple sitting on the grass. Gracia noticed his change in focus and said, "He was always trying to get you to settle down. Marry you off to someone."

"And I always told him that it wasn't any of his business."

Gracia's voice softened, "I think he just wanted you to be happy…to have what he had." The conversation hushed. Questions plagued Gracia's mind, but she didn't want to be rude. Both of them knew what she was going to ask, it was only a matter of time. Finally when Gracia realized that Roy wasn't going to offer the information to her, she asked. "Why haven't you settled down? Started a family?"

Roy didn't say anything for a moment, but just continued to watch the young couple with interest. "I'd never want to do to my family what Hughes did to yours." Gracia's brows knitted together. "What do you mean?" she asked.

He turned to face her dead on. "He left you."

Gracia was slightly taken back. "He didn't leave me. He was taken."

"It doesn't matter. Either way, he's gone. Either way you were still left alone to raise Elysia by yourself." Gracia didn't know how to respond. When she didn't say anything Roy continued, "He knew the risks when you two got married. Being in the military means that there's always the possibility that you'll be killed. Desk job or no desk job, the risk is always there."

"We loved each other—did you really just expect him to break things off with me? Did you expect us to just go our separate ways and forget the connection we had?"

He sighed, "No. Of course not. But you asked me why I never settled down and I told you." He turned back to watch the couple again, and a quiet came over them once more. Eventually Gracia braved another attempt at the conversation. "Do you ever think about starting a family…do-did you ever want a family?"

He didn't take his eyes off the couple this time. "Of course I wanted a family. I think about it every morning at 8:05."

Gracia was immediately confused, "8:05?"

"Yes. That's when she comes in every morning. 8:05 on the dot." Gracia suddenly understood. Neither said her name, but both of them knew who he was referring to. He continued, "Do you really think that I wouldn't want a family? I'd love to have a family…I'd give anything to know that when I lay down every night I can look her in the eyes and kiss her goodnight, and she'll _be there_ in the morning."

"Then why don't you-"

"I said I'd give anything…and it's true, but there may come a time when I end up just like Hughes—I'd never want to put her through that." He paused as he looked back at Gracia. "Every time I see you, I see her. I see what she'd look like if something were to happen to me—I'd never want to do to her what Hughes did to you and Elysia."

Gracia was feeling a little angry, Roy was making her husband's death sound like it was Maes' fault. "Maes didn't _do_ this to us. He didn't leave us, he was taken. Roy, I knew the risks when I married him, and I married him anyway. I thank God every day because I had the opportunity to _know_ him…to be with him. If I had the chance, I'd do it all over again. It wasn't until I met Maes that I realized how incomplete I was, just being with him—it made me whole, and I wouldn't have given it up for the world."

Roy was silent. After a moment he spoke, his voice low, "What about Elysia? I don't think she really had a choice in this matter. You knew the risks of marrying a military man, but Elysia didn't have a choice. Its not just for her, what if we had children—they'd have to grow up without a father, just like Elysia has to. I don't want the people I leave behind to hurt. I made it my life's mission to rise to the top, to fix this country. I knew that by making that choice, I was going to have to give up any chance of having a family…but the needs of the many outweigh the wants of the few. I'd rather die knowing that I helped change this country, than die knowing that my children will never have a father and my wife will have to raise our children alone." Gracia was speechless.

They continued to sit in silence, but finally Gracia found her voice. "I'm sorry you feel that way Roy. Getting married, having Elysia, they were the best decisions of my life. Even if he was taken away, I'm glad that I was able to be with him when I was." Gracia stood up, and started to pick up one of the bags she had. The bag was a little too heavy though and the bottom fell out. A square package tumbled out and rolled to a rest at Roy's feet. It was wrapped in bright blue wrapping paper and as Roy bent down to pick it up he was able to read the tag. '_To my baby girl, I'll always love you. Love, Daddy.'_ Roy could feel a ball forming at the back of his throat. "Love Daddy?" he said looking up at her. She nodded slowly as she gently took the package from him. "Maes was going to have a music box made for Elysia last year, but he put it off too long and the man couldn't get it finished in time for her birthday. He decided to just wait and have it finished for her birthday this year." She explained

"It was pretty bold of you to put 'Love Daddy' on the tag. What will Elysia think?"

"A few years ago Hughes took out an insurance policy on himself so that if he was ever killed in the line of duty Elysia and I would be supported by the military for the rest of their lives. The money that we get is substantially more than what he was paid originally because they promoted him two ranks after his death. It was that money that paid for the music box to be finished…so it really is from 'Daddy'." Roy couldn't find the words. It seems that even when people die, their presence is still felt in ways that their loved ones couldn't imagine. Roy helped her pick of the other packages, but soon they both realized that there wasn't a way that she'd be able to carry all the gifts with the ripped bag. "Do you want me to help you get these home?" Roy asked. Gracia nodded, a small smile on her face. Despite their little spat, she was still grateful for Roy's presence. It seemed that they both could use company right now.


	3. A Good Mommy

The Wants of the Few

Author's notes: Thanks to everyone that reviewed! It really makes my day . Here's a few answers to a coupled of reviewer's questions:  
Maylin-Chan: You don't sound mean at all ! I know its against the military's policysfor them to have a relationship and that's going to play a bigger part later on in the story. Overall, Roy knows that he wouldn't be able to get involved with her b/c of that, but his main problem with dating her is because he doesn't want to hurt her if he's killed.

To anyone that was wondering if I was going to keep going w/ the fic: Yup! I'm still going strong...believe me, I'm just getting started ;)

Chapter 3 – A Good Mommy

Riza smiled wide as she watched Elysia play with Black Hayate from her kitchen window. Children fascinated Hawkeye. She loved the way they ran, they way they played, but most especially the way they smiled. The smile of a child was something special, it was much different than that of an adult. Usually behind an adult's smile there was false happiness and encouragement, but behind a child's smile was pure innocence. Riza couldn't remember a time that she smiled like that, but watching Elysia smile felt almost like she could feel some of her own innocence come back. Riza glanced at the clock, 6:11. It was just starting to get dark because the days were beginning to get shorter, she knew that soon Elysia would be getting hungry, and Black Hayate would be as well. She opened the sliding door that was the entrance to the backyard and poked her head out, "Elysia, you need to come in and eat." The young girl politely nodded and walked inside. Riza whistled and Black Hayate followed.

Elysia sat down at the table. Riza walked over to the fridge, "What would you like to eat Elysia?"

She thought for a moment, "Um…can I have a peanut butter sandwich?" Riza smiled wide, "Of course." '_Children are something else. If it'd been an adult, they would have expected me to cook, but this little girl just wants a sandwich_.' Riza pulled out a jar of peanut butter and a loaf of bread. "Did you have fun today?" she asked the girl as she made the sandwiches.

"Yes Ma'am." She replied politely. Hawkeye could tell that she was trying to be on her best behavior. "I like your dog."

"I thought you might, you've been outside with him for almost 2 hours." She said as she put the sandwiches on the table.

Elysia dove into her sandwich, at first biting off a little more than she could chew. The little girls cheeks expanded making her look a lot like a hamster as she tried to chew while still keeping her mouth closed. Eventually she gave up and just chewed with her mouth open. When she'd swallowed her huge bite she gulped hard and said, "You'd make a good mommy."

The comment surprised Riza. It wasn't that she'd never thought of having kids…quite the opposite, but she'd never really thought she'd be a good mother. She knew that she could come off a little too stern sometimes. "What makes you say that?"

Elysia took a sip of milk to wash down some of the peanut butter and replied, "You cut the crust off my sandwich. My mommy says that big girls should be able to eat their bread with all the crust on it, but I still don't like it. My Daddy used to cut it off for me when she wasn't looking." Elysia threw her a close lipped smile as if she'd just divulged a huge secret. Riza smiled back at her. "I'm glad you like it."

Suddenly, the phone rang. Riza picked up. "No problem, Gracia." Elysia heard Riza say. "Elysia will always be welcome here. What? No, she's been an angel. Don't worry about bringing her over some clothes...no, Ican just let her borrow an old t-shirt of mine. Yes, I'll bring her tomorrow at 10. All right…you too. Goodbye." Riza hung up the phone and turned back to see Elysia's expectant face. "That was your mother," she said, "She needs a little more time alone so you're going to spend the night here."

Elysia's face fell. "Where's my mommy?" she seemed on the brink of tears.

"Your mommy's at home." Riza said, sitting down next to the child in attempts to comfort her. "It'll be okay. You'll see her tomorrow."

"But-but what if she isn't here tomorrow?" Elysia said, a few tears sliding down her cheeks. Riza gathered the small child in her lap and hugged the little girl's body close. "Don't worry sweetie, your mommy will be fine. She'd never leave you." Gently, Riza started to rock the child. The tune of Hush Little Baby came to mind and she started humming it.

After a few moments Elysia sat up and to look at Riza. "My Daddy used to sing that song to me." She said as she began wiping her eyes. "He used to sing it to me while I tried to go to sleep." Her nose was running and she sniffed uncontrollably, "He always said it was our special song."

Riza's face softened and she took pity on the girl. She hugged the child again and rubbed her back. '_Children should never have to go through this_.' She thought sadly knowing the pain all too well.


	4. Miss Riza Why?

The Wants of the Few

Disclaimer: Don't own anything

Author's note: Takes place about an hour after the previous chapter.

Chapter 4 – Miss Riza Why?

Hawkeye lifted the small girl out of the tub and wrapped a big towel around her. Elysia breathed in the towel's aroma, it smelled like lilies. Riza picked her up and carried the child to her room, wrapped like a butterfly in a cocoon. Riza set her down on the bed and hunted through her drawers to find something for Elysia to sleep in. "This should be fine." She said out loud as she grabbed an old t-shirt. "All right, arms up." She said to Elysia. The little girl reached for the sky and Hawkeye put the shirt on her. Elysia stood up to look at herself in the mirror. Riza couldn't help but smile uncontrollably. The shirt was way too big. It not only reached the floor, but had a few inches to spare. The collar of the shirt was stretched out and it kept falling off one of Elysia's shoulders. To say the least the little girl looked like a midget in giant's clothing. "Maybe it won't be fine." Riza said, suppressing a small laugh. "Let me see what else I can find." She looked a little longer and happened to find an old jersey she still had from secondary school. She'd dated a boy on the football team for a little while and he'd given it to her to wear to one of the games. It was so comfortable she'd never had the heart to throw it out. She switched the shirts out on the little girl and while this one was big, it paled compared to the other. The biggest shortcoming the jersey had was that the arm holes were huge and they hung around Elysia's waist. "Sorry, but I think that's the best I can do." She said to her.

Elysia smiled wide, her outlook on the night seemed to have improved a great deal since dinner. "I like it!" she said looking at her reflection proudly, "It makes a pretty dress!" She twirled making the shirt bottom fly out. As she did she accidentally got a little too close to Riza's nightstand and she knocked one of the pictures off. "I'm sorry!" she gasped as she picked it up. "I don't think I broke it."

"It's okay." Riza said taking the frame from her. "Accidents happen." The frame and glass were intact so she gingerly put it back on her nightstand. Elysia took the moment to take a closer look. "Miss Riza why do you have a picture of Uncle Roy? And who are these other people?" she ask innocently.

The picture was of Mustang's unit, Riza was, as always, by Mustang's side in the picture. "That's Lieutenant Heymans Breda," she said pointing to a red haired man on the left. "Next to him is Vato Falman. The blonde haired man is Jean Havoc, and the man with the glasses is Kain Fuery. Then of course there's Mr. Roy, and me-"

"Whose the man with the sparkles?" Elysia asked interrupting.

"Major Armstrong. And then there's-" Hawkeye paused, there was one more person in the picture…Maes. He wasn't as noticeable sitting down in the corner of the picture…she hated herself for not thinking.

"That's my daddy!" Elysia said. Her face wasn't sad exactly…but it wasn't exactly happy either. It was more of just stating the facts. "Mommy keeps lots of pictures of daddy around the house. I have a really pretty one next to my bed. My mommy is all dressed in white and my daddy is wearing a bow tie." She explained looking up at Riza.

"That does sound pretty." She replied back. Something in her mind couldn't help but be amazed. This little girl cried for a half hour about her mother, but talking about her father didn't seem to phase her in the least. There was a slight sadness that was in her voice, and her eyes fell a little, but other than that there was no indication that she was upset. '_Children are strange things'_ Hawkeye thought to herself as she watched Elysia look at the other photos she had by her bedside.

"Is this Mr. Roy too?" she asked holding another picture up. It was Roy, a much younger Roy, giving the camera his trademark smirk and holding out his State Alchemist's pocket watch.

Riza nodded. "That was taken when he passed the exam to become a state alchemist."

"Miss Riza, why do you have so many pictures of Uncle Roy?" she asked.

"I'd hardly say that two is many." Riza countered.

"Its many when there's only two pictures." The little girl argued. It was true, there were only two pictures. Not just in Riza's room, but in the whole house.

She sighed, she didn't have much family left, only her grandfather. Her military unit was the closest thing she'd had to family in a long time. "Mr. Roy's my friend. Don't you like to have pictures of your friends?"

"When are you and Uncle Roy going to get married?" Elysia asked boldly.

Hawkeye's mouth hung open, and her eyes widened. That was certainly unexpected. "I-we-um. Mr. Roy and I aren't getting married. What gave you that idea?"

"Well you've got lots of pictures of him, and you are always together…my daddy said it was just a matter of time." Elysia replied matter-of-factly.

"I can assure you Elysia. Mr. Roy and I aren't getting married."

"Why not?" Elysia said, seeming a bit put off that her idea of them getting married was being pushed aside so easily.

"The rules say we can't get married." She explained.

"Well that's a _silly_ rule. If you love someone you should marry them." The girl said using child logic.

"I-we-Mr. Roy doesn't love me." Riza said, feeling herself blush a little. This whole conversation was getting all too personal. '_Now I remember why I don't have kids…they ask too many awkward questions._' She thought, '_On the bright side at least she hasn't ask me where babies come from…yet'_

"Why not?" Elysia asked her eyes widening. "Do you have cooties?"

Riza couldn't help but crack a smile. She hadn't heard the word cooties since she was seven. "No, he just doesn't like me like that. I'm sure you'll understand when your older. Now, how about we tuck you in?" she said changing the subject and escorting the little girl into the guest room.

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lol, cooties...

Thank you everyone that reviewed. I had a really horrible dream last night that I got a report card back saying that I had the writing skills of a 2 year old and that I had buck teeth. It was horrible. :P (I don't have buck teeth by the way) It made me feel all warm and fuzzy inside to get to my mail and see that you all are enjoying the story. In fact, it made me feel so good, you get an extra chapter today ;)


	5. Story Time

The Wants of the Few

Disclaimer: I own nothing

Chapter 5 – Story Time

"Up you go." She said as she lifted Elysia onto the twin bed. After helping Elysia snuggle in for the night Hawkeye got up to leave. "Miss Riza?" Elysia said, her voice sounding small, and a little scared.

"Yes?" she said sitting back on the bed.

"Will you tell me a story?"

"Um…I'm not sure I know any stories…" Riza said searching her memory banks for something.

"You could make one up." Elysia offered.

"Ok…if it'll help you sleep, but I can't promise you it'll be good. What do you want the story to be about?"

"Um…how about a prince!" Elysia said, beginning to get excited.

"Ok, let me think…" after a moment or two Riza began to form a few ideas. "Once upon a time," she started, "there lived a handsome prince. He was admired from far and wide."

"What did he look like?" she interrupted.

"Oh, um. He had raven hair, and charcoal eyes. Well this prince was so very handsome and charming that many princesses from many different kingdoms came to try to convince him to marry them."

"Were the princesses pretty?"

"Every single one of them. Each was more beautiful than the last," Riza continued, the story was beginning to take on a life of its own. "The prince could see that they were pretty on the outside, but none of them were pretty on the inside. So in the end, he didn't choose any of them. Rejected, all the princesses returned to their castles. The prince was so handsome and charming that the princesses knew that they'd never find anyone so perfect again. So they all refused to marry anyone but the handsome prince. Naturally all the princesses' fathers were very angry. What were they going to do with their daughters? Finally, so upset with the handsome prince for making his daughter refuse to marry, one king decided to send someone to kill the prince."

Elysia gasped, "What happened? Did the prince die?"

"No. The prince heard of the plot and he hired someone to guard him day and night. This guard was special though. This guard wasn't a man, but actually a woman. She just pretended to be a man so that she could guard the prince."

"Why did she want to guard the prince?"

"Because she knew that the prince was a good person and it wasn't his fault that the princesses didn't want to marry anyone else. The woman guarded the prince day and night and soon became close friends with the prince."

"Did the prince know she was a girl?"

"Nope." Riza said, she was really beginning to enjoy this fairytale. "No one knew she was a woman. One night while guarding the prince the two started talking. The prince was sad because he knew the people in his kingdom were sick and starving, while his father and the rest of the castle were rich and had more food than they could possibly eat. The prince wanted to change things in the kingdom, but his father, the king, was selfish and refused to let the prince help. That night, the woman-guard saw past the prince's handsome face and saw that his soul was more beautiful than his face could ever be."

"Did they get married? And what happened to the person that was supposed to kill the prince?" Elysia asked energetically.

"I'm getting to that. That night, after the prince fell asleep the woman-guard took off her helmet that shielded her female features from the prince. She leaned over his sleeping body, intending to give him a kiss, but before she could the assassin broke into the room."

"What's an ask-a-sin?" Elysia asked.

"Oh, an _assassin_ is a person that was hired to kill someone important." Riza explained. Elysia nodded and she continued. "The assassin broke into the room just as the woman-guard was about to kiss the prince. The woman lunged for her trusted spear and bravely fought off the assassin. Just before the woman-guard landed a fatal blow to the assassin, the assassin scratched her face with his knife. She was in a lot of pain and she was tired, but she had just enough strength to kill the assassin before he killed the handsome prince. During the battle the prince had woken up and saw the woman-guard and the assassin fighting. When the woman-guard finally won, she fell to the floor, tired and bleeding. Grateful for all the woman-guard's help and protection the handsome prince nursed her back to health. When she finally got better she looked into the mirror, but what she saw made her cry. The cut that the assassin had given her during the fight had become a very ugly scar."

Elysia's mouth hung open as she listened to the story with fascination. "What happened?"

"Well when the prince saw her crying he asked her why. She told him that she was once beautiful, and now with this ugly scar on her face she could never be considered beautiful by anyone again. The prince dried her tears and looked at her once beautiful face. He told her that he'd known her for a long time and that she was a good person. He told her that it wasn't her outsides that mattered, it was her insides. He told her that it was what was inside that made her beautiful on the outside. The woman-guard again saw what a good and beautiful person the prince was, and it made her love him all the more."

"Did they get married?"

"I'm getting to that part." Riza said, smiling at the child's enthusiasm. "The woman-guard loved the prince and the prince loved to her too, but the rules of the kingdom said that all princes had to marry princesses-"

"That's a silly rule."

"That's what the prince thought. He pleaded with his father to change the rules so that he could marry the woman he loved but the King refused. He told his son that it was how things were supposed to be done. Sad, the prince told the woman-guard what had happened."

"They don't get married?" Elysia said, small tears pricking the sides of her eyes.

"I'm getting to that. A few days later the woman-guard heard about a man plotting to kill the king. The woman-guard was faced with a decision. If she didn't do anything, the man would assassinate the king and then the prince would be able to become the king and he could change the rules so that they could get married. While the woman-guard wanted to get married to the man she loved, she didn't want the king to die, especially if she could stop it. So she decided to do the right thing and she crept into the king's bedroom chamber and stood guard all night. In the really early morning the assassin came and tried to kill the king. The woman-guard stopped him and saved the king's life. The king in turn was so grateful that he changed the rules so that the woman-guard and the prince could get married. He said that anyone that is courageous enough to do the right thing must be good enough to marry his son. So the woman-guard and the handsome prince got married. And with the woman-guard's help, the prince eventually convince the king to share the food with the people. Eventually the prince became king, and the woman-guard became his queen and the two of them ruled over the land with kindness and compassion."

Elysia's smile grew. "That's a nice story Miss Riza. You'd make a good mommy. You're good at making up stories." Riza smiled and the child continued, "When you and Uncle Roy get married, and you have babies, you should tell them that story."

"Elysia, I already told you. Mr. Roy and I aren't getting married and he doesn't love me."

"Do you love him?" the child asked.

A hard lump formed at the back of Riza's throat. "That doesn't matter, it's against the rules for us to get married anyway."

"Well maybe you could save the king and he could change the rules-"

"—Elysia, things don't always work the way they do in fairytales. In real life, people don't always get to marry someone they love." Elysia studied the floor. She wanted Miss Riza to marry someone she loved. "Now I think it's time for you to go to sleep." Riza said as she got up and walked over to the light switch. "Sweet dreams, Elysia." She said as she hit the light.

"Night Miss Riza." She called from the dark.

* * *

Sorry if the fairy tale sucks...I made it up as I went along like I figured Riza would.


	6. Melancholy Tears

The Wants of the Few

Disclaimer: I own nothing  
Author's notes: Whoa! OO I've got over 700 hits on this story...cool! Just to warn you...this is a really sad chapter.

Chapter 6 – Melancholy Tears

Back at the Hughes' residence Roy and Gracia were busy setting up for Elysia's party. Roy had just finished hanging the last banner. He stepped back to admire his work but was interrupted by a huge yawn. Gracia smiled tiredly at him. "Maybe you should get some rest Roy." She advised.

"No, it's all right. I don't mind helping." He said. They'd been decorating and getting ready for the party for the past 3 hours and he was getting tired. Unable to conceal it, he yawned again.

"Roy, the only thing left is to finish the cake, and I can do that."

"No, I want to help." He said again.

"You can barely keep your eyes open. If you won't go home and sleep at least go sit on the couch for a while. Just looking at you is making me sleepy." She said, yawning almost on cue.

"Ok." He replied, too tired to really argue. It'd be nice to get to sit down for a while. He'd not sat down since they'd started. He started toward the couch and Gracia went to the kitchen to check on the cake. Almost as soon as Roy sat on the couch he fell asleep. Gracia was also having trouble staying awake as she waited for the cake to finish. When it finally finished baking she iced it and put it away. Another hour had passed. Sluggishly she dragged herself into the living room. Roy was quietly snoozing on the couch. She smiled, if she'd just glanced at him she might have thought it was Maes with that black hair. She went over to the couch quietly and sat down gently on the edge. Gracia watched him as he slept. It felt strange to have a man in the house again…the thought made her think of Maes again. '_I'd give anything to have him be Maes_.' She thought. "You know Roy," she said to the sleeping figure, "Maes told me once that you had a theory for human transmutation. Part of me almost wants to wake you up right now and make you to bring him back." When he didn't stir, she knew he couldn't hear her. She continued, wanting to just voice these anxieties she had, "Hearing you talk today, I doubt you'd say no." Tears threatened her eyes. "I miss him so much, and I'm afraid that I'm starting to forget him. Sometimes it's hard to remember what his voice sounded like, or the way his skin felt…losing the memories feels like I'm losing him all over again. The empty places where those memories used to be just make me feel so much more lonely…I'd give anything to just hear his voice, or see him walk through that door one more time." Silently she started to cry, tears streaming down her face in a soundless flood. She started a little when she felt a hand on her cheek, wiping away a few tears. She turned to see Roy sitting up. Shamefully she averted her eyes, after their discussion today about not regretting anything, she felt a little sinful letting him see her cry. His hand cradled her chin and made her look at him. "I miss him too." He said, his voice catching a little. Gracia's body began to shake a little as she cried and Roy drew her close. She embraced him fully and cried deeply into his uniform. Soon her silent cries became heart-shattered moans. After a moment or two Gracia could feel her own shoulder was a little damp. Some how knowing he was in just as much pain made her feel just a little less alone. The two sat there holding each other for a long time. Eventually, both were beyond exhausted and they soon fell asleep in each other's arms.


	7. Mistaken Lover Midnight Visitor

The Wants of the Few

Disclaimer: I own nothing

Author's note: The stars are switching points of view. Wow...I've already gotten over a 1,000 hits on this story and its already my most faved! I feel loved. Therefore, you guys get three chapters today ;)

Chapter 7 –Midnight Visitor/ Mistaken Lover

_"Why would I ever love someone like you?" Mustang said to her laughing. Pain stabbed through Hawkeye's heart at the declaration. As if it wasn't enough, he continued. "I could have anyone and you actually expect me to fall in love with an ice queen like you? Don't make me laugh." And he did, he continued to laugh. His laughter grew louder and louder until it was all Hawkeye could hear. Malice filled his laughter, and she found it hard to breathe. She'd bared her heart to him and he'd ripped it apart. Why is it that the ones we're closest to can hurt us the most? It was all she could do to keep from breaking right there…_suddenly a young voice interrupted the laughter. "Miss Riza?"

Jarred, Riza bolted upright in bed. '_What a horrible nightmare_.' She thought sweating, and breathing hard. She glanced over at what woke her up. Elysia looked small and hopeless standing next her bed in the over sized jersey. "What's wrong?" she asked when she gained her composure.

"I need to see my mommy." Elysia said.

"Your mommy's at your house. Why do you need to see her?" she asked. Elysia looked at her pitifully. "Are you scared?" The little girl nodded. "Elysia, you're mommy is just across town. You'll see her in a few hours." Elysia didn't look convinced, "I need to see her now!"

"Why what's wrong?" Riza asked getting concerned. For all she knew there could be something seriously wrong that Gracia hadn't told her about.

"I just need to see her." Elysia said again.

"You're mommy is fine Elysia. Everything's going to be okay-"

"Please…"

Elysia's pleas weren't falling on deaf ears. Riza glanced at the clock, 1:30. '_It's kind of late to call…but if it'll make her sleep better…_' "Okay Elysia, come with me." She said as she took the little girl's arm and led her into the kitchen.

_Roy could feel her in his arms. Her skin was like silk. His heart seemed to explode within his chest, his feelings and emotions becoming too big for his body. It was all he'd ever wanted. He could feel her breath on his lips…barely centimeters separated them. Would she pull away if he tried to engage her? Riza was like no one he'd ever known. He couldn't predict her like other women…he felt his lips, his soul, being drawn to her. She was his other half…he'd known it for years. Without her he couldn't feel complete. At last they're lips touched ever so slightly. He could see her eyes soften…everything felt like a dream—but the body in his arms felt so real…he closed his eyes, concentrating only on her._

_The past year had just been a nightmare. He was here again. He'd never really died, it was just a bad dream. She could feel his callused hands turn to velvet as he ran his hand along the curve of her stomach. She could feel his breathe on her lips and the loving look in his eye. His glasses were on the nightstand and his eyes had a mischievous gleam as he pulled her into a kiss. 'Oh Maes!' her heart screamed, 'I couldn't have missed you more...' This couldn't be a dream…his lips on hers felt too real to be ignored. _Suddenly it wasn't Maes' she was kissing…it was Roy

Roy could hear the phone reaching out to him through the mists of his reverie…he tried desperately to fight it. If he couldn't be with Riza in consciousness, he at least had her in his dreams. Finally he gave into the telephone and opened his eyes, not to see Riza…or even his apartment, but Gracia. He was so stunned he backed away, but he was tangled in her arms and they both ended up falling off the couch. She was on top of him now, just as confused as he was. Emotions ran through a crazed cycle in both of them. Roy wasn't sure if he was embarrassed, flattered, happy, or upset. There was another emotion in the back of his mind…longing. He wasn't sure if it was Gracia or Riza that was causing it, but he was a little more than afraid that it was the former. Gracia was feeling it too. It was a strange force that unconsciously wanted to pull the two closer. The phone rang again, interrupting both their thoughts. Gracia clumsy was able to get off Roy and he stumbled in to the vertical position. The phone continued to ring. Gracia lightly jogged to the phone and said "Hello?" but it was too late, they'd hung up.

"What's wrong? Where's my mommy?" Elysia asked. She was feeling anxious. Riza had agreed to let her talk to her mother but she wasn't going to drive her over without talking to Gracia first.

"She's probably asleep and didn't hear the phone." Riza guessed.

"Call her again." Elysia said in a small voice, her eyes beginning to water.

She couldn't help but feel sorry for the child, so she picked up the receiver again and dialed the number. It only had time to ring once.

Roy was next to the phone now and picked up first this time. "Hello?" he said. The familiar voice startled Hawkeye. "Colonel!"

"Lieutenant?" Roy questioned, equally startled.

"What are you doing at Gracia's house at 1:00 in the morning?" she questioned…fearing the answer. She knew there was only one reason Roy was at a woman's house at 1:00 in the morning. _'…that's why she needed a little more "alone" time._'

"We were just—um…" Roy said, still a little dazed. Between his dream, where he woke up and his lieutenant calling he was feeling more than just a little confused.

"Oh! I'm sorry to interrupt you…I-I just need to talk to Gracia for a moment." Riza said, a stabbing pain jutting through her heart…his speechlessness only seemed to confirm her conclusions.

"Hawkeye, its not-" he started to explain, but before he could finish Gracia took the phone from him. As soon as he mentioned Riza's name she knew something must be wrong with Elysia. Her motherly instincts took over and she couldn't stop herself from taking the phone from him.

"Riza?" Gracia said into the receiver. The sudden change in voices surprised Riza. "Is there something wrong with Elysia?" Gracia asked, feeling a little anxious.

"Oh, well she just keeps saying she needs to talk to you—I was going to ask if you wanted me to bring her back, but seeing as you're busy with Roy and all—"

"Can you put her on the phone for me?" She asked, interrupting Riza's explanation fishing. Riza handed the receiver to the child and the little girl held it with both hands.

"Mommy?...No I'm not hurt…no my tummy is ok…I am being good…but-but I was scared…no, she's nice…but-…yes ma'am. Ok…ok…I love you too. 'Night Mommy." Elysia said. Riza could see that she didn't get the answer she wanted from her mother. "She said I needed to learn to stay with other people sometimes…" she explained as she handed the receiver back to Hawkeye. She couldn't help but feel sympathy for the child. This whole thing was hard on her.

Riza's mind tentatively wandered back to Roy—was he really sleeping with Gracia? He was a player, but it just didn't seem like him. She was his best friend's wife, she wasn't sure he'd sink that low, but something about it made her worry. He dated women all the time…he was a player she'd always known that, but this was different. The other women never bothered her because she knew he'd never get serious with one of them…but Gracia wasn't just some woman. She was a widow, a single mother. If Roy actually did get involved with her she'd expect a serious relationship. Was Roy ready to give in to a commitment like that? And if he wasn't up to the challenge…what would that do to Gracia? Or Elysia for that matter? As shameful as she felt about it, she rather hoped that he wasn't ready for the commitment. She didn't want to hurt Gracia…but she didn't want to lose Roy…'_How can you lose something you never had?_' she asked herself solemnly as she helped Elysia back to bed.


	8. Friends?

The Wants of the Few

Disclaimer: I own nothing

Author's Note: I hate this chapter, but I can't figure out why.

Chapter 8 – Friends?

Gracia hung up the phone and turned to look at Roy. Awkwardness invaded and filled the room until the two felt they were choking on it. What were they supposed to do now? They both felt it…they'd shared a kiss, there was chemistry, but was it for each other or for the ones they'd dreamed about?

"I should leave." He said hoping she wouldn't bring it up. No such luck.

"Roy, wait. We need to talk about this." Gracia said, she could feel her face burning…she'd rather be anywhere else right now.

"Gracia…I'm sorry. I was out of line, I really didn't mean to."

"No, it's okay. To be perfectly honest, I- I sort of…enjoyed it." She said much to his surprise. Roy found himself smiling slightly, "Yeah, I did too."

"So…what do we do now?" Gracia said, she barely had time to get the words out before she found his lips on hers once more. The kiss lasted only a few moments, but it made a definite decision of things. Roy pulled back from her lips smiling widely. Gracia's smile was just as wide, "Did you enjoy that?"

He shook his head smiling the whole time, "No, not at all."

She smiled back at him and said with a slight laugh, "Good, me neither."

"Friends?" He asked.

She nodded, "Friends." The two made their way back to the couch and sat down. "Are you as relieved as I am?" she asked.

"Yeah," he replied, "I've got enough drama in my love life as it is, I don't need anymore." They smiled at each other again and hugged to show there were no hard feelings. "To tell you the truth…I was dreaming that you were Hawkeye when I kissed you the first time…"

Gracia laughed, "I dreamed you were Maes!" The awkwardness melted away and the two began to feel much better. Roy glanced at the clock on the mantle. 2:00. "I should head home." He said standing up and starting toward the door.

"I'll show you out." Gracia said. After hugging Roy goodbye and inviting him to Elysia's party in the morning she headed back into the living room. She was so tired she could barely keep her eyes open. Determined not to be disturbed she unplugged the phone and dragged herself to bed. For once she was going to get a really good night's sleep.


	9. Lost

The Wants of the Few

Disclaimer: I own nothing

Chapter 9 – Lost

Riza hadn't been able to fall back asleep after calling Gracia. Roy's presence haunted her. The idea that he was finally ready for a commitment was killing her. It was one of the reasons she'd never tried to start up a relationship with him. She figured, '_What's the point, he'll go on one date with me and dump like the rest of the women he dates_…_besides, I know what happens when you play with fire…_' Now she couldn't help but wonder if she completely lost her chances with him. '_What chances_?' she thought bitterly, '_The military regulations killed those "chances" before I even came on the scene._' Riza continued to lay in the darkness trying to force herself to sleep. After a while she glanced at the clock. 2:37. "Ugh," she sighed. "This is going to drag forever-" Suddenly her ears picked up a sound. It sounded sort of like the door hinges…but that was silly, no one would dare break into her home, everyone knew her reputation, and no one would be leaving because- "Oh no." she gasped as the realization dawned on her. "Elysia!" she gasped as she jumped up from bed and ran into the guest room. "Elysia…" Riza sighed in relief as she saw the sheets were still covering a small round form. She walked over to the bed and pulled back the top of the sheet to check on the child…unfortunately, there wasn't a child beneath the sheets—only a pillow. Riza's heart clenched. What was she going to do? "She must have tried to walk home…" Riza said out loud fearing the worst. Terrified, she didn't even stop to put on shoes and she ran out. "Elysia!" Riza screamed out into the night hoping the child would hear her. There wasn't a response. Riza wasn't sure precisely how long the child had been gone, but she assumed Elysia couldn't get too far, after all , she's only a child. The night air was chilly and it cut through Riza's blue night clothes. The darkness enveloped her and she was having trouble thinking straight. Fear for Elysia overtook her senses and her usual composure left her. "Elysia! Elysiaaaa!" she screamed.

Roy trekked home. The night felt alive. His emotional brush with Gracia had had a strange effect on him…for some reason he couldn't feel happier, like some great weight had been lifted. Roy couldn't help but reminisce to his dream…he wanted to slip back into that make believe bliss. He let his mind wander and he pondered what Riza's skin would really feel like. Suddenly out of the darkness he heard Riza's voice. "Elysia! Elysiaaaa!" The unexpected break in the night and with the most unexpected person he could think of left him more than a little stunned. When his wits came back he rushed toward the sound of his Lieutenant's frantic voice. When he came upon her form she was in the street, barefoot in her night clothes. He rushed to her and gripped her around her shoulders to get her attention. She was so frantic she couldn't hardly look at him as she continued to shout for Elysia.

"Lieutenant! What's wrong? Why are you out here in your pajamas? Where's Elysia?" Roy said, his questions barely registering in her mind. She tried to fight her way out of his arms to continue her search for the little lost girl but his hold on her shoulders was too strong and her thoughts were spread too thin to really concentrate on breaking free. "Answer me Hawkeye! What's wrong? Talk to me!"

"She's gone! I was supposed to take care of her…and she's gone!" Riza finally blurted out.

"What do you mean gone? Look at me. Calm down and tell me what's wrong." Roy said trying to calm her in hopes of getting her to make more sense. After a moment or two more of struggling she began to relax a little in his arms and calm down. If he hadn't been so concerned for her, he would have enjoyed holding her.

"She's gone…I was supposed to take care of her and she,- and she's gone. I checked on her and it was just a pillow-"

"She ran away?" Roy ask, attempting to get the whole story before letting his concern take hold of him. Riza nodded, too sick to say the words. "Do you know where she might have gone?" he continued.

"I think she is trying to walk home." She said.

"Okay, let's think about this rationally. Which way would be the most probable way she'd take home?" Roy asked. A quick thought raced through his head, '_I'm actually telling Hawkeye to be rational. The world must be mad._'

"That way." She replied, her senses coming back as she pointed the direction Roy had come from.

His eyes narrowed in thought, "I just came from that way and I didn't see her. Most likely she hasn't gotten that far yet. Let's search closer to your house." As much as Hawkeye hated to admit it, she felt a little hurt at hearing the Colonel had just 'came from that way' …it was just another reminder where he'd been and what he'd been doing. "You're right, let's head back toward my house. We can grab my car and maybe we'll be able to cover more ground." She said, letting her mask of the perfect soldier take over once more.

They both sprinted quickly back to her home to retrieve the car. As they ran by the other houses Riza's eyes furiously searched the bushes and trees for Elysia. There wasn't any sign of her. Roy was concerned for Elysia's safety, but he couldn't get over Hawkeye's reaction. He'd never seen her so hysterical before. She was always so calm, collected. Even staring down the barrel of a gun, she couldn't be cooler headed, but now—well it only confirmed his belief that nothing should ever happen between them. If she reacted this way to a missing child that wasn't even her own, he couldn't imagine her reaction if she thought she lost him. His earlier ease was slipping, and dejection was settling into his stomach.

Hawkeye didn't have her keys with her. She'd been so upset with Elysia's disappearance that she hadn't even locked her door. Her keys were next to the door so she didn't even have to go all the way inside her house to get them. She grabbed them from the stand and quickly locked the door. Hawkeye motion Mustang toward the car and they both jumped in.


	10. Pajama Search Party

The Wants of the Few  
Disclaimer: I own nothing

Author's note: lol, this is probably one of my favorite chapters.

Chapter 10 – Pajama Search Party

They rode in silence each looking carefully on each side of the street looking for Elysia. It'd been almost 2 hours and neither had said a word since they'd got in the car. Roy was driving, Riza hadn't been so easy to give up the keys but after he convinced her that she was too upset to drive she gave in. '_How does he do that?_' She asked herself. '_How is it that he's the only one that can get me to do just what he wants?_' It was one of the things that fascinated her about him. He seemed to have the ability to know just how to manipulate someone to get them to do what he wanted. It seemed whenever she thought she finally had him figured out, he turned around and surprised her. It was something she loved about him…he wore a mask most of the time, pretended that he didn't care, that he was just another player playing the game. But every once in a while he'd take off that mask and show the heart that he pretended he didn't have. It was quiet times like that, that made her love him all the more. When he loosened up enough to take off the mask, it was like he invited her into his own private world…like it was something special that was only to be shared between the two of them. He'd done it again tonight. Just when it seemed like she had no where to turn he showed up and saved the day like some dark haired prince coming to save his princess in distress. Riza almost laughed at the thought of Roy riding up on a horse to save her. '_Mustang riding a horse. The bad puns could practically write themselves_.' She thought. As silly as it seemed, he had saved her. If it hadn't been for him she'd probably still be in the middle of the street in her pajamas—it was just then that she remembered that she _still_ was in her pajamas. She felt more than a little embarrassed. Blush threatened to rise in her face, but she pushed it back. She shifted uncomfortably and moved a little closer to the door. She could think of at least 24 military statutes that they were violating. She couldn't hold back her blush any longer when she remembered how he grabbed her when he found her in the street. It was the first time in a long time that she could remember him touching her…looking back on it, she almost wished the moment could have went on forever. He'd only grabbed her around her around the shoulders, nothing romantic by any stretch…but she'd waited so long for his touch. It didn't need to be romantic…it was _something_. At the very least it was the most slight inclination that he did care for her at the very least as a friend. His hands had been so warm…

Mustang could hardly see anything in the blackness and it wasn't for lack of trying. Hawkeye though, was making his search increasingly harder. For the several hours they'd been in the car; she'd been sitting fairly close to him, her shoulder touching his. The night shirt she was wearing was extremely loose and he could see directly down her top. He was trying to be a gentleman, but it was getting harder and harder to resist temptation. It got worse when the collar of her shirt began to slide seductively off one shoulder, leaving the bare skin of her shoulder bumping against his as the car bounced down the road. His eyes were beginning to blur from searching so long, and the lack of sleep wasn't helping the matter. Out of the corner of his eye he noticed Hawkeye pull the collar of her shirt back into place and move closer to the passenger side door. '_Oh yeah, two hours later she moves_.' He thought sarcastically. Normally he'd be more than happy to spend the night driving around in the dark with Riza in nothing but her PJs, but this was turning into a nightmare. It killed him to have her so close, but he couldn't do anything. Everything he wanted was less than two feet away from him and he was stuck driving around in the dark, searching for someone he couldn't see in the shadows. Finally he couldn't stand it. He'd been ignored by her for more than 2 hours, he was tired and on top of everything else they hadn't seen hide or hair of Elysia. Roy was fed up. "We should turn back." He said as he turned the car around. Finally Riza perked up. "What do you mean! We haven't found her yet. Keep driving."

"No."

She was appalled at his willingness to just give up. "Give me one good reason to turn around."

"I can give you five. I'm tired, we haven't found her, we've searched this area three times and, we need more people."

"That was only four reasons." She said feeling more than annoyed.

"The fifth reason is that's it's almost daylight and I'd rather not be discharged from the military because I was seen driving my Lieutenant around in her pajamas." Roy said, he could tell this was going to turn into another of their fights.

Blush rushed into Riza's face. She'd been hoping he hadn't noticed her pajamas. "Well if you hadn't been playing house with Gracia I could have taken Elysia home at 1:00 and she wouldn't have ran off to start with." She mumbled under her breath. Despite her mumbling Roy heard her comments anyway. She thought he and Gracia were fooling around…'_Well that explains why she's been ignoring me this whole time_.'

"My relationship with Gracia is none of your business, and as for Elysia, if you'd been watching her she wouldn't have been able to run off. Don't go trying to blame your follies on me."

"My follies? You're having a fling with your dead best friend's wife and you think me losing track of a little girl is a folly?" Hawkeye retorted. He was right, it was her fault for not watching Elysia more closely, and she really didn't have any business prying into his personal matters, but his statement had cut too close to home. She wanted to hurt him like he hurt her.

The remark had caught him off guard and he stopped the car in the middle of the street. "Get out."

Hawkeye was a little stunned, but she realized she'd hit a nerve. "It's my car."

"Fine." He said as he opened the door and got out of the car, "But if it hadn't been for me, you'd still be standing around in the middle of the street screaming in your pajamas." As he said this she'd slowly slipped out of the car and he was yelling at her over the hood. That said, he started walking off into the night. He'd walked several yards before he started talking again, this time he didn't turn around. "And for your information, I wasn't having a "fling" with anyone. Gracia ask me to stay so she could have help baking Elysia's cake and hanging the decorations. The only reason I was there when you called was because I fell asleep on the couch. Before you start accusing me of things you should really get your facts straight." He continued to walk away from her. Suddenly her heart leaped for joy and cringed in pain at the same time. She was happy to know that he wasn't actually fooling around with Gracia, but her comment in the car was uncalled for, and she hated herself for how she'd hurt him.

'_How could she say that to me?_' his heart ached. Not just because she'd suggested that he and Gracia were an item, but because for a few minutes while he was with Gracia he'd actually thought about it. It hurt worse because it was Hawkeye saying that to him. '_Why is it that the ones we're closest to can hurt us the most?_' he asked himself solemnly as he walked in the direction of his apartment.

Hawkeye watched his receding form and her feet felt frozen to the pavement. Suddenly she regained her senses, "Colonel!" she shouted after him and ran up behind him. His head wanted to turn, to see her following him but he refused its request. She was now beside him and he could see her out of the corner of his eye. "Colonel, I'm sorry…I was out of line." He continued to walk, pretending to annoy her. It was apparent she was going to have to grovel. '_Ugh…sometimes I hate this man_.' She thought. She was above begging, but after what she said she knew that she deserved what she was getting. "I'm sorry Mustang…I don't know what else to say."

"How about that you were wrong." He said, stopping, "How about that you jumped to conclusions…how about that you shouldn't have brought Maes into it."

"You're right." She said, staring at the pavement in shame. "It was a low blow to bring Lieutenant Colonel Hughes into it…I just thought—"

"Thought that Gracia and I were sleeping together." He finished for her. She nodded, "I was afraid that—" she started.

"Afraid?" he said raising an eyebrow.

"I was afraid that you were just going to treat her like another one of your one night stands…I didn't think it was fair to her."

"You know not everyone I date is a one night stand. I _can_ make a commitment if I wanted to…if I found the right one." The last of the statement was directed at her, but she didn't notice, she was still convinced they were talking about Gracia.

"I guess I'm not really comfortable with the thought of you making a real commitment…at least not to Gracia. I know how close you both were to Lieutenant Colonel Hughes and I judged you unfairly. I just couldn't help but think it seemed wrong somehow…

"Like I was trying to take his place?" Roy suggested. She nodded, staring at the pavement. '_Thank God he didn't ask me about why I have a problem with him making a commitment._' She thought, relieved. "As for my commitments," Roy continued, "I'm a big boy and I don't need you to approve who I make my commitments to." Her soldier's instinct made her nod again. "Yes sir. Like I said…I was out of line, and I'm sorry."

Her apology seemed rehearsed to him. Like her mind was on autopilot…or more like autosoldier. This aggravated him all the more. It wasn't that her apology seemed insincere, because he knew that wasn't the case. It just seemed that they were suddenly thrown back into the office and she was acting as his subordinate again…her perfect soldier mask back in place. For a little while there he'd actually hoped that they were finally past shielding themselves from each other with the masks they so often wore. He sighed heavily trying to keep his emotions to himself. "Let's get back to the car. I need a little sleep and we need to get you out of those pajamas." Suddenly he realized what he said and he blushed inside, "I mean you need to change your attire."

Riza smiled slightly at the comment, and walked a few steps behind him back to the car. She felt a little lighter now, she wasn't sure if it was that they were going to continue the search after she got dressed or if it was that she knew that he and Gracia weren't an item, though she had a small inclination that it was the latter.

* * *

Autosoldier...i love that line :)


	11. Funny Little Surprises

The Wants of the Few

Disclaimer: I own nothing

Author's note: I know that FMA's world probably doesn't have Christmas, but it just sounded so good I couldn't help it. Riza's maternal Grandfather is in the military. I think he's currently a general. I rewrote this chapter like 10 times, so I hope it turned out alright.

Sees summery for movie Ah! I need resolution! (If you're wondering what the heck I'm going on about and don't mind spoilers, email me)

Chapter 11 – Funny Little Surprises

With their masks securely back in place Roy drove her home. The masks suffocated any chance of conversation so both were silent. Finally, Roy forced a little dialogue. '_Anything is better than this silence…_' "Hawkeye, we need to call Gracia and tell her what happened."

Riza nodded, her brain still on autosoldier. "You're right." After a moment she cautiously added, "While I call her, you can get some sleep in my room."

It was an unexpected offer, but something in Roy couldn't help but accept. "Sounds like a plan." He replied staring straight ahead. It was a strange feeling, but he was actually looking forward to getting back to her quarters. Something about this whole situation made him feel like he was playing house. A small smile played about his lips as he reminisced back to his dream…thoughts of her skin and her lips played out in his mind.

Riza could feel his shift in mood and found it contagious. She smiled slightly as well. She wouldn't have normally suggested he sleep at her house, much more, her bed, but logic put it as the only place for him. She'd originally thought that he'd drop her off and head home to get some sleep, but his house of three blocks away and he didn't have a car. Even if she were to let him take her car, he'd still have to come back to pick her up when they started the search again. Naturally her mind wandered to where he'd sleep if he stayed and she would have been more than happy to make him rest on the couch, but from the couch he'd be able to hear her phone call to Gracia and admitting she'd messed up wasn't something she wanted the Colonel to hear…even if he already knew the circumstances. So eventually, all that was left was her room. Of course the guest room was still open, but Riza couldn't help but feel strange about letting Roy take Elysia's place. Somehow, she felt that if she did that, it would be like admitting that they might not find her…and that wasn't something she wanted to think about.

Riza began to dread getting back home. '_What am I supposed to tell Gracia? Hi! It's nice to talk to you again…why am I calling you in the middle of the night? Oh, that's simple, because I lost your daughter and we have no idea where she is. Nice talking to you, I'll see you later!_' Riza's spirits dropped with the thought. There wasn't a good way to tell her. '_There's no good way to tell someone that someone they love is gone…_'

Roy pulled the car into the driveway and the two got out and made their way into the house. As they were coming up the walkway, Riza noticed a light was on in the bathroom, '_Did I leave that on?_' she thought, confused. '_I don't think I've been in the bathroom for hours…'_

Once inside Roy stood around uncomfortably as Riza put away her keys and took his coat and shoes. He waited for her to give him some sort of direction, but she didn't. It seemed as if she'd momentarily forgotten he was there. Roy studied to the room. There was a couch against one wall with a coffee table in front of it. Also in the room there was a fireplace and bookshelf. Off to his right was a hallway with what looked to be a bedroom at the end of it and a few doors off to the sides of it. The only thing that divided the living room area and the kitchen was a counter. As Riza busied herself with something in the kitchen, Roy observed how small her quarters were on the inside. '_Well…I suppose she doesn't really need a large house…its not like she has a family…_' he thought sadly; he wanted desperately to remedy that. Roy took a deep breath and sighed. Something caught him off guard as he did so, '_mmm…_' he thought, '_the house smells like lilies._'

The sigh got Hawkeye's attention and she remembered he didn't know his way around her house. "Sir, here…let me direct you to my bedroom." She said as she walked past him down the narrow hallway. He followed at a short distance and she walked into the room and turned on the light. The room wasn't what he'd expected at all. The rest of the house was fairly Spartan. White walls, tan carpets had covered the other rooms. This room however was painted a very light blue and had white lace curtains over the windows. As he looked closer he could see that tiny blue flowers were stitched into the lace. There wasn't much in the room, but he could tell this was where she spent her time. There were a few books and magazines in a basket next to the bed and even a little knitting sticking up out of the basket. '_Never thought Hawkeye could be so feminine_.' Roy thought. Just being in her room made his body tingle. The smell of lilies enveloped him as he wandered his way into the room. Riza stood behind him, nervous. '_Why doesn't he say something?_' she thought. She was a little afraid that he thought her room looked ridiculous. She often admitted to herself that to anyone else it probably did look silly. She'd only recently added more color to it a few weeks ago and Elysia had been the only one to see it so far. Roy continued to wander around the room and he came to a stop in front of something on her dresser. It was a snow globe with a ballerina inside. Roy squinted at the tiny dancer with fascination. "I would have never pegged you as a figurine collector." He said.

"I'm not." She said as she walked over to stand beside him. "When I was eight, my father got this snow globe and gave it to me for Christmas." She explained.

"It doesn't really seem like something you'd like." Roy observed.

Carefully she lifted it off the dresser and cradled it in her hands. "My mother used to dance ballet. It was in my blood, I loved it. Not only was it beautiful, but it required enormous self discipline."

"You sound like you speak from experience."

"I do." She replied. "When I was eight I wanted to be a professional ballet dancer just like my mother. I practiced every day. I loved feeling myself getting stronger, watching my moves get smoother…having my mother compliment me when I got something right…or hearing my father cheer me on when I put on little recitals for him. My mother, taught me everything she knew. We even had a mirrored room in our house and every afternoon I'd go there and my mother and I would practice at the bar until it was too dark to see. My father brought this back for me when he came back from one of his trips to the north. He made and sold guns and had to travel sometimes to get certain parts." Riza said. She was revealing so much to him, she desperately wanted to stop herself, but she couldn't. It was like a faucet had been turned on and she felt compelled to pour her heart out to him…she couldn't stop herself anymore. "I didn't spend much time with him when I was younger because the guns scared me. He was always trying to get me to let him teach me to shoot, but I was too afraid. I was soft spoken back then and I didn't like the noise. When he did go on his trips, he always brought me something. A doll from the south, a hair barrette from the east, a snow globe from the north." She said as she stared longingly at her little trinket.

"So, if you wanted to be a ballerina…why did you join the military?" Roy asked.

"This was the last thing he brought me." She said. She seemed to be in a trance. "He came home for Christmas and gave this to me. He was only able to stay one night but he wanted to make sure that his baby girl got something for Christmas. While he mainly sold his guns and rifles to the military, he did get some private collectors. One of his collectors in the East had called him and wanted to buy several of his new guns. He left Christmas morning before we were awake. He usually called when he had a chance, or sent us money, but when we didn't hear from him in a few days we called my grandfather and had him look into it. At the time he was working in the military's investigations department. He called us back later to tell us that my father had died in an accident. While my father was teaching the collector's son to shoot a rifle, the child didn't know the gun was loaded and accidentally shot my father. He was killed instantly.

"Hawkeye…I'm sorry." He said, he hadn't meant to bring up painful memories.

"It's all right." She said as she gently tipped the globe to the side and let the fake snow rustle around the dancer. "You asked why I never became a ballerina—why I decided to join the military instead. After my Grandfather found out about my father he came by to check on us. He found me in my father's shop sitting behind a crate of rifles. I didn't like sitting so close to the very things that killed him…but it was the closest I could be to my father. My grandfather had always known that I was uncomfortable around the guns, and he decided that it was time for that to end. He took me outside, loaded a rifle and began to shoot at a target. After a little while of watching, he let me try. I was a little scared at first…but after the first shot, I was hooked. It was like ballet…it was an exact. It required practice, hard work, self-discipline…everything I loved about ballet. While I was shooting I could forget everything else." Riza explained to him. She couldn't understand why she was telling Roy all this…it seemed so pointless. It wasn't something that he needed to know about her…as much as she didn't think he needed to know, something in her _wanted_ him to know. Remembering her father made her heart ache, but somehow telling Mustang about it, it made her feel better. It was almost as if telling him was helping her carry the weight. "I guess I finally realized why my father loved it. The more I shot, the closer I felt to him. I was addicted.

Roy couldn't help but be fascinated. Her story was sad, but hearing her talk about shooting the gun for the first time…she sounded so passionate. Suddenly he realized why she so often went to the shooting range after a long day. She wanted to be close to someone she loved, doing something she loved. It was a whole other Hawkeye he was seeing tonight…

"My grandfather started coaching me and at the age of 10 I could put an entire clip into a target's bull's eye. By that time though, my mother couldn't keep the business afloat anymore because she didn't know enough about the equipment to be able to sale it properly. So she had to sell the shop, after it was sold…the only option I had left for my talents were in the military."

Roy didn't know what to say. He'd never thought to ask about her family. He'd always assumed that she didn't get along with them or something and that's why she never said anything. This was definitely unexpected. Roy swallowed audibly. "I'm so sorry Hawkeye." She looked so sad…he would have given anything to be able to take her in his arms and hold her…he wanted to hold her for all the times she had to face things like this alone…

"Its all right…I still have my memories…I still have my ballerina." She said as she finally looked him in the eyes. Tears scratched behind her eyes trying to escape, but she held them back. "Do you want to see her dance?" she asked with child like innocence in her voice. Roy didn't make a response but she went ahead anyway. Carefully she turned the globe over and turned a key on the bottom. She tenderly turned the trinket back over and watched as the snow fell around the ballerina. Suddenly music began to emanate from the globe's base and the dancer began to turn in a circle. The two watched the little ballerina as she danced to the slow rhythmic tune of "Hush Little Baby".

'_It's funny_,' he thought, '_how you think you can know someone, and then they surprise you like this._'

The ballerina finally wound down and stopped. The two stood in the silence for a moment and Riza turned to Roy, "Colonel, I'm going to call Gracia. Please, make yourself at home. I'll wake you in an hour and a half."

Roy's heart broke again, '_Damn, back to autosoldier_.' Instead of voicing his annoyances, he only nodded. The two parted ways and Riza closed the door behind her. Roy studied her room some more as he unbuttoned the top of his uniform. The bed was queen size and he sat down as he started to unbutton his dress shirt. As he laid his dress shirt beside him on the bed the two frames on the bed side table caught his eye. Delicately he picked up the framed picture of the entire unit to study it. It was the same one that he had sitting on his desk at work. He smiled at the familiar portrait. At the bottom of the picture Roy recognized his Lieutenant's familiar handwriting. The words read, "My Family". Roy's eyes soften and his heart fell. '_Some family we are_.' He thought sadly, '_No one really knows you Riza…we all wear our masks. Me, the shallow Colonel. You, the strict Lieutenant…and the rest, faithful subordinates ready to die for the cause. The men couldn't be more true…but you and I are still only actors trying to play our parts. Just faceless puppets reading the script of life. Hughes was the only one of us that could see us all for what we truly were…_'

"There are some days I wish I wouldn't have told him to mind his own business…maybe if I hadn't, you'd have more than just your unit to call your family…" Roy said out loud to the Hawkeye in the portrait.

Roy gently replaced the photograph and picked up the one next to it. It was a bit of a surprise to him to find himself looking into his own face. It was a much younger version of himself, but it was him nonetheless.

* * *

Note: Okay, before you start whining and saying that she'd never have her room that color, or have lace curtains because she's not like that, I'd like to tell you to shut up. If you know the character well…and I _have_ done my homework, then you'll know that not only can Hawkeye be girlie, but she's also described as a "romantic", believe it or not, she even reads romance novels. I made the room more feminine than most people would think because if you ever seen any art of her outside a uniform, or just her on her days off, she's always dressed feminine, most of the time wearing a skirt. It only makes sense that she'd spend a little time making her space reflect herself. If you're wondering why _only her room_ is girlie it's because she just recently remodeled the room and she's going to do the whole house, but she hasn't had time. So don't complain to me that I'm changing her character to fit my little fantasies, cause I'm not…Roy's character on the other hand…feel free to bash it. I'm totally massacring his character. Sorry if I sound like a royal btch here, but I'm really pissed off because they removed one of my stories and it was really good. If you would like to read the story the removed, check out - http/ for her love of ballet, dancing requires a lot more discipline than most people realize. I just think it would be something that she'd like. 


	12. The Unexpected

The Wants of the Few

Disclaimer: I own nothing

Author: Warning, sexual-ish situations to come. Strange chapter…it's like awkward, then surprise, then awkward, then passion, then awkward…lol

Cashmeritan- yup, heard the duet, its great!  
crazyanimefreak15- Thanks! It warms my heart to hear that  
Apparition7- In Chapter 10 she calls a Lieutenant Colonel out of habit, he wasn't promoted until after death and I figure she wouldn't be used to calling him a Brigader General -

Chapter 12 – The Unexpected

Hawkeye dreaded making the call, but it had to be done. She dialed the number she'd put out on the counter while Roy had been standing around in the living room and waited for Gracia to pick up. One ring…two rings…three rings…there still wasn't an answer. Four rings…Five rings…Six rings…still no answer. Riza's stomach flipped. '_Why doesn't she pick up_?' she thought anxiously. Hawkeye hung up and tried again. One ring…two rings…three rings…there still wasn't an answer. Four rings…Five rings…Six rings…still no answer. "Where could she be?" Riza said out loud. '_She could just be a heavy sleeper._' She reasoned, the idea didn't really make her feel much better but there wasn't any use to jump to conclusions. '_I'll try calling again after I get dressed._'

Hawkeye made her way down the hall. She didn't notice the light was still on in her room and just assumed that Roy was already asleep. Quietly she turned the door knob and opened the door. What she saw was definitely…unexpected. The Colonel was sitting on her bed shirtless holding a picture of himself.

Riza's brain couldn't figure out how she should react. She was partly angry at him for looking at her pictures, but she was partly angry at herself for not putting them away. A part of her was simply stunned at the fact that her commanding officer was in her bedroom half naked. She tried to not stare but her eyes wouldn't obey and they drank in his body. Sinful thoughts rushed through her head… '_What would his skin feel like? His lips? His chest? His arms?_' Every fiber of her body wanted to just be closer to him, but a moment later her sensibility came back. For the second time in one night her heart leap for joy and cringed in pain. This was probably the closest she'd ever get to having a romantic relationship with him and it was being ruined by the fact he'd seen her pictures of him…what was worse was that he knew she kept them right next to her bed…what would he think?

Roy hadn't noticed the door was open at first, but he heard a strangled gasp and when he turned and saw her there he was overcome with embarrassment. It wasn't because he was half naked…but because he'd been caught looking through her things. While Hawkeye had been fairly open with him tonight, he knew she was someone that valued her privacy. He could feel the tension in the room crowding against his bare skin and he wasn't sure what to say. He stood up to face her and he could feel her staring at his chest. That pesky pajama top of hers had slid off one of her shoulders again and she looked breath-taking standing in the door like that. A fleeting thought ran through both of their minds. '_I_ _Love You'_. The boldness of the thought made Riza blush slightly, she never wanted to think that about him…it wasn't proper. Roy couldn't bring himself to admit it…if he did, it'd only be opening himself up to the pain in knowing he could never get closer, but somehow, tonight, he couldn't help himself. He wanted to take off his mask, to forget everything about the military and the country and just take her in his arms. It took all of Roy's self control to keep himself in one place, when he saw her blush it caught him off guard and he dropped the picture. The frame smashed against the floor and the back of the frame came off revealing Maes' familiar handwriting on the back of the portrait. From where Roy stood he could easily read the words, "He'll come around…sooner or later –Maes."

The two stood still…too stunned to say anything. Lucky for them, they didn't have to. "Whatcha doin'?" a small voice said from behind Riza. Hawkeye jumped aside out of the door frame revealing Elysia still in the oversized jersey.

"Elysia!" the two adults gasped. "How did you- " Roy started, but was interrupted by Riza. "Where did you go!" Elysia seemed very confused.

"I didn't _go_ anywhere." Elysia said. "When did Uncle Roy get here?"

"Sweetie." Riza said, kneeling down. "Where did you go? You really worried us. We've been looking for you everywhere. You could have gotten hurt."

Elysia looked hurt, "I told you. I didn't _go_ anywhere! I had to go to the bathroom. Then I went back to bed, I promise!"

"So…you were here…in the house, the whole time!" Roy said. He was slightly annoyed. This night had been one disaster after another with Riza and it turned out that they'd worried over nothing. Sure on the brightside he did get to spend some time with her, but they'd spent most of the time either fighting, or just being awkward. The child nodded, her lower lip jutting out. She apparently thought she was in trouble. The moment that lower lip jutted out, Roy just couldn't be mad. '_Well, at least she interrupted us. I'd hate to have had to explain to Hawkeye **why** I was going through her things._' "Well I guess you'll have to call Gracia again." He said to Hawkeye, "She's probably out of her mind by now."

"Actually, she didn't pick up when I called." Hawkeye said.

"I suppose it's for the best, at least one person didn't worry out of their mind tonight."

Elysia perked up once more, "How come you don't have a shirt on Uncle Roy? Are you and Miss Riza having a sleepover?" The two adults blushed a little remembering their situation. "Um, Elysia, why don't you go back to bed for a little while? Uncle Roy dropped a picture and we need to clean up the mess. We don't want you to get cut on the glass." Hawkeye said, trying to usher the little girl out of the room.

"So _are_ you having a sleepover?" the little girl asked over her shoulder as Riza tried to push her out of the room.

"Yes…yes we are." Riza said off hand. '_Children ask too many questions_.' She closed the door and turned to face Roy. The awkwardness flooded the room again and neither felt they could breathe. '_What do I say?_' Roy asked himself. '_What do you say at a time like this? Hi, sorry I broke your picture of me, oh, why was I snooping through your things? That's simple I love you and I'd like to father your children and take care of you for the rest of your life.'_

While Roy was racking his brains, Riza was racking hers. '_What am I going to say? Sorry you found out that I'm secretly in love with you, but don't worry we can still be friends? Why did Maes give me that picture anyway?_' she thought, annoyed at the meddling man. Her mind wandered back to that day at lunch. He'd simply given it to her. All he said was that she needed something to brighten her new home. Apparently he'd heard she'd moved out of the barracks and was trying to help her out. It wasn't until later that she'd found the words on the back of the photo.

The room was so quiet and they stared at each other uncomfortably. If you were to ask either of them they would have sworn they stood there for eternity, but in truth it was barely more than a few seconds. The broken frame on the floor caught Riza's attention and she bent down to pick up the pieces. Roy suddenly came to his senses and started helping her. They tried to avoid each other, but it was pretty much impossible. His chest was still bare and as he moved she could see every single one of his muscles moving just under his skin. Strangely enough, it reminded her of a thoroughbred horse, '_Mustang'_ she thought to him, '_There are too many puns for your name…_' As hard as she tried she couldn't get him out of her head. She felt so shallow for noticing how muscular he was…but she couldn't help it. The more she tried to stop thinking about it, the more she thought about it. The more she tried to deny herself and her feelings for him the more she wanted him.

Mustang was having similar troubles. He was really beginning to hate that pajama top. It was worse than it had been in the car. The neck had slipped off one of her shoulders again, exposing her white flesh. Her hair was down and messy and it tumbled over her exposed shoulder seductively. Roy unwillingly pictured himself tenderly brushing away the hair, and kissing the smooth skin of her shoulder…just the thought made his chest ache in longing. He found himself staring uncontrollably and because neither was paying attention they reached for the same piece of glass. Their hands touched and the chemistry in their bodies pulled them closer together. They were barely a hair's breath from each others lips. All sense had been forgotten and they were acting on instinct.

Their lips met and passion broke loose. Neither could hold back any longer and they fell backwards on the floor. His arms around her waist were caressing her skin. His lips were so soft and she fell completely into him. Allowing him to wash over her like waves on the sand. Her hands were tangled in his hair and he could feel her fingernails stroking his scalp as he kissed her neck. The smell of lilies enveloped him and he couldn't believe how good she felt in his arms…for once in his life he felt complete.

Riza was the first to regain her senses. '_What am I doing?'_ She thought, her heart ready to burst from her chest. He was kissing her shoulders now and she'd rather gnaw off her own arm than tell him to stop. Roy began making a necklace of kisses around her neck, but she stopped him halfway through. "Sir…we have to stop." She said against her will. Everything about this felt right, but she knew that if they continued to indulge themselves, things would get out of hand. Besides…there was Elysia to think of. What if she came back in…Riza didn't particularly want to have to tell her about what they were doing.

Sir! She'd called him sir! Even like this she refused to put her mask away. It hurt him more than he could admit that she wouldn't pull away her mask for him. Roy reluctantly stopped and looked her in the eyes. They looked different. They were no longer cold and staring from behind that mask she so often wore…contentment was reflected in her irises and he realized why she'd called him 'Sir.' She'd been enjoying this just as much as he had…she called him 'Sir' to remind him of their places. As much as he hated hiding behind his mask, they both knew that they were necessary to keep their distance. If he was to ever make it to the top, he couldn't have her on his arm…he needed her to guard his back and she couldn't do that if she was discharged for having a relationship with a superior officer. He slowly let go of her waist and let his fingertips savor their last bit of contact with her skin. They moved away from each in slow and clumsy motions…they were broken. Somehow apart neither could function again. They had gotten a taste of being complete and now that they were apart, stuck with only a few pieces of their selves they couldn't seem to remember how to operate. Riza noticed the top few buttons of her pajama top had come undone and she fumbled with the buttons, trying to remember how to fasten them. They were both moving in a daze, not quite sure what to do now. It felt like a dream. Riza wanted to scream in pain from being away from him, but she wanted to smile because she had the moment to be with him…suddenly love seemed more than just an emotion, more like an oxymoron.

"I'm sorry," she said. Trying to get back the emotional distance they once had. It was so hard. Suddenly, she'd found out there was more to life and she had to give it up after barely a taste. "I guess it was the heat of the moment…"

Roy nodded solemnly. He knew what she was doing. It was obvious and probably for the best. Even if it were for the best he hated himself for still wanting more.

"I should get dressed…" she continued, looking at the floor. She tried to keep from looking at him. She knew that if she were to look back up she'd see that longing look in his eye and she knew that she wouldn't be able to hold herself back from him any longer. He didn't say anything back, but she had a feeling he nodded and she went over to her closet and quickly pulled out an outfit. Still without looking at him she said, "You should probably get some sleep." and left the room. Roy's chest and arms felt emptier than they'd ever been the farther she walked away from him. He would have given anything to take her in his arms again, but something in the back of his mind reminded him that '_the needs of the many outweigh the wants of the few…_'


	13. Playing the Game

The Wants of the Few

Disclaimer: I own nothing

Author's note: Okay, I know some of you don't know how to play chess, so I'll give you a quick over view so you'll understand some of the stuff in this chapter. The King in chess can only move one space in any direction, but if the King is taken then it ends the game. The Queen in chess can move in any direction and can move as many spaces as she wants. The queen is considered the most powerful piece on the board and is often used to protect the king. To end the game one player must put the other player's King in checkmate. Checkmate means the no matter where the player's King moves it will be taken. There is another move called "check" which is basically one player saying to another "I can take your king if you don't move it, but it's not in checkmate yet." If someone puts the other player's King in "check" they _have_ to say it and then the player whose King is in check _has_ to move the king, or move a piece so that the king is no longer in "check". Also the person playing with white pieces moves first. Rooks can move horizontal or vertical as many places as they like. Bishops can move only in diagonals, but as many spaces as they like. The pawns can only move one space at a time and can only take another piece if the piece is at a one space diagonal from it. Knights move in an "L" shape, three spaces straight and then one space to the side (knights are the pieces that look like horse heads). I hope this helps.

Chapter 13 – Playing the Game

Hawkeye felt as if her heart suddenly weighed 2 tons. She felt that the weight was crushing her lungs and she forgot how to breathe. She continued to the bathroom, trying to ignore her heart. '_That's what I've been doing for years…_' she thought sadly, '_ignoring my heart and hoping I didn't have one…why did I invite him back? If I would have just let him go home…this would have never have happened_.' The thought was a double edged blade. She regretting letting her relationship change with the colonel because neither could act…but she finally felt that she wasn't alone. It'd only been a moment…but she had felt complete, as if she'd finally found the key piece of herself that she hadn't known she'd been without. Every instinct she had told her to go back, to spend what was left of the night in his arms…to go to him and never leave his side. She restrained herself. '_This can never work_.' She told herself, but it didn't make it any easier. Finally at the bathroom she opened the door. The light was still on, most likely from when Elysia used it and forgot to turn it off. '_Well that explained while it was on when we came up the drive._' She closed and locked the door and changed her clothes. Since it was Sunday she'd grabbed some civilian clothes, nothing fancy, just a simple grey skirt, grey shirt and a white jacket to go with it. She looked at herself in the full length mirror on the back of the door. Her face seemed different, she couldn't put her finger on it at first, but then it occurred to her. Her eyes were different…they didn't seem to be the cold, exacting soldier that she used to be…instead, they looked sad, filled with wanting. '_Why did I let that happen?_' she asked herself. '_I was fine before I found out what I was missing…_' part of herself hated knowing that she could never have that completion again…but part of herself was just happy to have experienced it.

Roy lay down in her bed. He never knew how empty a bed could feel…he never knew how empty _he_ could feel. Without her in his arms he suddenly felt so wrong. Everything told him to get up and go to her, to hold her and never let go…but he reminded himself once more that the needs of the many outweighed the wants of the few. Despite the truth in the thought it still didn't take away the empty feeling in his chest.

Not wanting to disturb Roy…or be tempted to be with him again, she went to the living room to sit and read a book. "I thought I left it on the coffee table." She said, thinking out loud. The book wasn't in the living room anywhere. _'I must have left it in my room…'_ she thought. She refused her craving to go back to her room and sat down on the couch. She stared at the little chess set on her coffee table. Riza thought back to when she got the chess set. She'd been 19 and had recently joined the military. Her grandfather had thought it'd be a good idea to teach her strategy. "Think ahead." He always told her, "Remember your goals, and think of a way to accomplish them…that is your best strategy…" _'Some strategy_' she thought. No matter how many times she played him in chess she couldn't ever beat him. She took his 'strategy' too far and often thought too far ahead. Thinking that her queen would be taken and she wouldn't be able to protect her king, she'd protect her queen and then because she was trying to protect it she ended up leaving her King open for a check. Then naturally she'd try to protect the King and she'd have to sacrifice her queen…it just seemed she never could win. Suddenly her strategy in chess made her realize her mistakes in love. She'd been thinking too far ahead, trying desperately to protect her mind, hoping in the long run her mind would protect her heart. But in doing so she ended up leaving her heart open…and he just came in and put her heart in check.

Roy couldn't sleep. He could smell her scent all over the pillows and it only made him want her more. Every time he closed his eyes, he saw her face. '_No_!' He protested. He was trying desperately to remind himself why he couldn't have a relationship with her, but now it seemed that he couldn't think of a reason. What had been his reason? Why had he tried to not get involved? Annoyed with his thoughts he got out of her bed and made his way into the living room. She was sitting on the couch staring at the chess set, lost in thought.

Roy's bare chest seemed to tighten just seeing her. Ignoring his chest he said, "You up for a game?"

His voice jarred her out of her memories and she turned to face him, "What?"

"A game of chess…" he said pointing at the set. "Do you want to play?"

"I thought you were going to sleep." She said scooting over on the couch.

He shook his head, "I couldn't sleep. Its funny…in the car I could barely keep my eyes open…I guess I'm too awake now." He said, taking a seat next to her. She shifted over a little more allowing him some extra room. It wasn't that he needed it, but she knew that she needed to keep her distance. He noticed she was uncomfortable and he tried to lighten the mood, "Are you scared you're going to lose lieutenant?" he flashed her that trademark smirk of his.

"No." she said, moving closer to the board…closer to him. She didn't have another chair, so they both had to play from the couch. Riza started to turn the board, but stopped. "Do you want to be black or white sir?"

"Black." He replied. They were back, safe behind their masks, trying to pretend that nothing had changed. She turned the board without a word and she made the first move. He made his opening gambit and they played back and forth for a few minutes without much conversation. Both of them were absorbed in the game and had temporarily forgotten their brush with change. Without either noticing they had both began to shift closer, in order to plan their strategies and see the board better.

Riza was a lot harder to beat than he expected. He'd never known her to really be a woman of strategy. She often preferred to tackle her problems head on…usually with a gun. She seemed to be holding back her pieces, trying to shield all of her more powerful pieces with pawns and rooks. It was costing her though. The more she tried to shield her powerful pieces the more small pieces she lost. Before long he'd taken all of her pawns, one of her bishops and both rooks.

Roy was really good at chess, but she wasn't surprised. He'd told her how he'd beat her grandfather at the game and she knew that if he'd beat her grandfather, he'd have no trouble beating her. While he was currently beating her, she had taken down a few of his more powerful pieces. He lost one rook, both bishops and his knight was in danger. His knights seemed to be his favorite pieces. He moved them and used them more often than any of the other pieces. The knights were as unpredictable as he was. Just as you thought you were safe, a knight would move in and take something else. Riza couldn't help but smile a bit, '_Mustang and his horses...the puns just keep coming…_'

"What are you smiling at Lieutenant, your going to lose." Roy said.

"Just smiling at my next move." She said as she moved her knight to take one of his knights. She looked up from the board, expecting him to appear annoyed but instead of looking irritated he was smiling…well, smirking. '_He's got something up his sleeve…but what?_' Riza looked at the board once more…appalled at her mistake. He'd set a trap for her and she'd fell for it. By moving her knight she'd just set an opening up for him to take her last bishop, and what was worse, was as soon as her bishop was out of the way, he'd have her king in check. As expected he took her bishop, "Check." He said, as if she didn't already know. "You surprise me Hawkeye, I didn't think you'd fall for that."

"Yes, well everyone makes mistakes sometimes," she countered. "At least I was able to take out one of your favorite pieces along the way."

"No you didn't." he replied.

She looked up from the board at him, "Yes I did. I just took one of your knights."

"I know," he replied, "But that's not my favorite piece. This…" he said as he picked up his queen, "is my favorite piece."

Somehow his selection didn't surprise her, the queen was the most powerful piece on the board and often used to win the game. "You always did love the ladies…" she said as she contemplated her next move. Roy smiled at the comment. "What about you?" he asked.

Riza's breath caught in her throat, "What about me?"

"What's your favorite piece?" he asked.

Riza almost let out a sigh…for a moment she'd actually thought he wanted to talk about what happened in her bedroom. She looked at the board for a moment and picked up her king. "This is my favorite piece."

Mustang looked a little confused. "But the king is such a helpless piece…you can't used it for anything."

"Only if you don't use it correctly. If you play the game just right it can surprise you. Besides it's the most powerful piece on the board…it's the one that decides the outcome of the game." She explained.

"I still say he's useless…if it weren't for the queen the king would easily be killed."

"Well if it weren't for the king then the queen wouldn't have a reason to live." Riza replied…suddenly they weren't talking about chess anymore. "Without him, she would probably just let herself be killed…she wouldn't have him to protect."

"If he was any kind of king at all he wouldn't have fallen in love with someone in his military…if he loved her he wouldn't make her protect him." Roy said, looking at the floor.

"So you're saying the king doesn't love her?" Riza asked her heart clenching. She almost hoped he'd say no…that the king didn't love her. Somehow, she thought maybe it would make ignoring her feelings easier.

"I didn't say he didn't love her…only that he shouldn't have fallen in love with someone in his military…you said yourself that she didn't have a reason to live if he was gone…she probably wouldn't feel that way if he hadn't fallen in love with her. If they'd just kept each other at arms length then if he were to be taken…then she wouldn't hurt so bad, she would still have a reason to carry on." It was getting a little strange talking to each other through the pieces, but somehow it was just easier to say these things if it wasn't really him saying it.

"They _did_ keep each other at arms length…but they had a connection, they couldn't walk away from it." Riza said, trying to convince him that she protected him because she wanted to.

"I'm not saying that they should just walk away from what they have…all I'm saying is that the country should come first…he needs to get to the top and take care of everyone else first before they can fall in love…the needs of the many out weight the wants of the few…Hawkeye, as much as I-_they_ want to, they have to take care of their responsibilities first."

"I know…I didn't say that they shouldn't take care of their responsibilities first…all I'm saying is that the Queen would follow the King to hell and back…whether he loved her or not. It doesn't matter if the king loves her, she loves him and she'll be hurt if he's taken, even if he doesn't love her."

"I just don't want you to hurt if I'm gone…" he said breaking their little game of parallels as he looked her in the eyes.

"It can't hurt much worse than this…" she said, he heart aching to be closer to him. Without a word he put his arm around her and held her close to his chest, quietly stroking her hair.

"I never wanted this to happen." He said, "I tried to keep you at arms length…I just didn't want you to get hurt."

"I'm not hurt." She said sitting up. "I'm a better person from knowing you. I love…my job." She said, narrowly avoiding saying something she would regret. The chess set caught her attention again, "It's my move, isn't it?"

He nodded. She understood his reasons…why they couldn't be together, and he understood her reasons for staying…things hadn't changed as much as either really wanted, but until he achieved his goal…they'd have to just keep playing the game.

* * *

side note, I know a few of you have been wondering if the last chapter was the end (obiviously it wasn't, but could have been) There are actually 18 chapters in all, so you guys have a little ways before the ending :)

Also, what just happened was that they just sort of agreed that they care about each other, but the country comes first. So they'll have to hold off until the country is taken care of :)


	14. Giggles and Stories

The Wants of the Few

Disclaimer: I own nothing

Author's note: When Elysia was dropped off at the beginning of the story, she was just supposed to be there for a few hours, so her mom didn't pack her an away bag.In this chapter and the next few she's wearing what she was wearing yesterday.

Chapter 14 – Giggles and Stories

The two continued the game and Riza was actually winning for a little while. Roy's mind still seemed a bit pre-occupied, but that was mostly because he was trying not to daydream back to the moments they'd spent in her room…the taste of her skin was still on his lips and he longed for her warmth once more. After a little while, Hawkeye made a mistake. Like so many times before, she tried too hard protect her queen and ended up losing it when she tried to protect her king. With only a knight left in her defense she knew it was the end. Roy only had a few pawns and a rook left, but it was enough to finally put her king into checkmate.

"Good game." He said, _'I can think of a few more I'd like to play with you'_ he thought as his mind wandered back to her bedroom. Somehow…knowing how she felt, knowing that she was going to follow him until the end…it made him feel more relaxed. It made him almost willing to make a few passes at her…even if he knew her answer would be no. Suddenly there were a few giggles from behind them. The two adults turned to see Elysia giggling at them from behind the couch. "I thought you were asleep," Riza said to the little tot. The small girl shook her head. "Then what are you doing behind the couch?" she asked Elysia. Elysia smiled a cheeky grin, "I was spying on you. I thought you said Uncle Roy didn't love you." Elysia said, in a matter-of-fact tone. Riza opened her mouth as if to say something in protest, but Roy beat her too it. "Of course I love Hawkeye." Riza's heart stopped. She knew he cared about her, but love was a strong word…especially from him. She never expected that word to cross his lips…especially describing her. "Of course I love her," he continued, "She's my friend, don't you love your friends?" Elysia nodded. "Did you two have a sleep over?" she asked. Hawkeye's face became a little pink. "Um…yes we did. We just got done with one of the party games." She said making something up. Roy glanced at the clock. '_8:00 AM'_ he mentally noted. '_Elysia's party starts at 10:00, so we should-_' Before he could finish his thought Elysia interrupted. "Why don't you have a shirt on Uncle Roy?"

"I was hot. So I took my shirt off." Roy said, making something up. "Hawkeye, its 8:00, I should get dressed and we need to get ready to take Elysia home."

Hawkeye nodded and Elysia burst out with another question, "How come you always call her Hawkeye?"

"Because that's her name." Roy said. The small girl climbed into his lap as she asked, "But why don't you call her Miss Riza like everyone else?"

"I'm not supposed to. The people at my work say it's against the rules." He reasoned with her.

"But you're not at work now…you could call her Miss Riza now."

Roy took a moment to consider…the child made a good point. He turned to Hawkeye. "What do you say Hawk-I mean, Miss Riza? Would you prefer me to use your first name?" Riza only smiled and nodded.

Riza felt a wet tongue on her bare leg and she jumped. It was Black Hayate. It was apparent he needed to go out. "Sir, I'm going to take Black Hayate out for his morning walk…can you help Elysia get dressed?"

He nodded and stood up, picking up Elysia off his lap and putting her on his hip. Riza went to the kitchen to find the dog's leash while Roy went to the guest room to get Elysia changed. Roy clearly heard the door slam as he dug around the guest room for Elysia's clothes from yesterday. He probably wouldn't have found them if Elysia hadn't remembered that Hawkeye had hung them in the closet. "Put these on while I look for your shoes." He said as he handed her the clothes. The little girl nodded and started to fiddle with the buttons. Roy turned his back to her trying to find the little girl's shoes in the closet.

"Uncle Roy?" Elysia said.

"Uh huh?" he replied still searching through the closet.

"Miss Riza told me a good story last night. You want to hear?"

"Sure." He said, not really paying attention to what the child was saying.

"Once upon a time there was a really pretty prince. He was so pretty that all the princesses in the world fell in love with him. The daddies of the princesses got mad at the prince because he didn't want to marry any of the princesses…are you listening Uncle Roy?"

"Uh huh." Roy said, still looking for the shoes. '_They're definitely not in the closet._' Roy thought to himself as he stood up. '_Maybe they're under the-'_ his thoughts were interrupted as he turned around to find Elysia "dressed". Well one really couldn't call it dressed…it looked more like she fell into a hamper. '_Note to self, don't let four year olds dress themselves_.' Roy thought as he tried to figure out how to get the little girl dressed. The dress was inside out, upside down on her head and the shirt that went under it was hanging around her knees with a few of the buttons in the wrong button holes. As Roy started to unbutton the wrong buttons and take the skirt off Elysia's head, she started back into story. "Because the daddies of the princesses were mad at the prince one of the daddies sent an ask-a-sin to go kill the prince."

Roy stopped, "What's an ask-a-sin?"

"You know, a person that's told to kill someone important." The child explained.

"You mean an _assassin_!" Roy exclaimed as the realization hit him.

"That's what I said." The little girl clarified. "Stop interrupting the story."

"Ok, okay, I'm sorry."

"Well the daddy of one of the princesses sent the ask-a-sin to go kill the pretty prince. The pretty prince found out that the ask-a-sin was coming so, he hired a pretty guard lady to protect him. But he didn't know it was a pretty guard lady, he thought she was a man because she wore armor. The pretty guard lady really liked the prince and she thought it was mean of the princess's daddy to send and ask-a-sin to go hurt the prince so she decided to help him." Elysia continued.

Roy was actually listening and the part about the "pretty guard lady" caught his attention… '_this is some story you dreamed up Hawkeye…_' he thought as he put Elysia's arms through the arm holes of the shirt.

"One night when the pretty guard lady was guarding the prince he told her that he wanted to become king so that he could help the people in his kingdom because they were all really hungry and sad. The prince's daddy was really mean and wouldn't let anyone eat the food. When the pretty guard lady heard about what the prince wanted to do she fell in love with him because she figured out that he was pretty on the outside and on the inside. After the prince went to sleep the guard lady took off her helmet to kiss him and the ask-a-sin came in and tried to kill the prince. The pretty guard lady stopped him, but before the guard lady killed the ask-a-sin he cut her face."

Roy was actually finding the story fairly interesting, '_Only Hawkeye would make a fairytale when the woman came in to save the day…_' he thought as he finished the final button on Elysia's shirt and started to put her arms through the arm holes of the dress.

"The pretty prince helped the guard lady get better and when she got better, she cried because the cut became a scar and she thought it made her look ugly. When the prince saw her crying he told her that it's more important what is on the inside than what is on the outside and he said that he loved her. The guard lady loved him too and they wanted to get married but the mean king said that it was against the rules. He said that the prince had to marry a princess…" Elysia said. She paused for a moment and stopped talking. She was fully dressed now, with the exception of her shoes and Roy was just standing there listening to the story. "Well what happened?" Roy said.

"Um…I can't remember." Elysia said guilty. Roy was actually getting interested and now he wouldn't be able to find out the end of the story. He smiled good-naturedly and said, "Well stay here, I'm going to go get a shirt for myself and try and find your shoes." Elysia nodded and stayed at her position on the bed as he walked out of the room.

'_I don't think this past 24 hours could be any more peculiar_.' Roy thought to himself. '_First I helped Gracia decorate and we both end up mistaking each other for people we care about…then I find Hawkeye screaming in the street in her pajamas looking for someone that not only _wasn't_ lost, but was actually still in the house._' The events seemed to roll through his mind like a highlight reel…he slowed it down when it came to the point in the evening when he and Riza had shared a kiss. He rewound the moment in his head and let the memories of the few moments rush back to him, the taste of her skin, the feel of her fingers; it excited him as he found himself back in her bedroom. He let little fantasies follow him around the room as he glanced around for the child's shoes. He ultimately found them underneath Hawkeye's bed. Roy smiled at the shoes. They were so tiny, he found himself unwillingly wondering what it would be like to buy a tiny pair so shoes like this for a child of his own…a slight emptiness filled his chest… '_The wants of the few…_' he thought to himself. The little shoes would have to wait for a while, Roy had a job to do, and fantasizing about spending the rest of his life wasn't going to get him to the top any faster. He made his way back to the guest room and was met by Elysia in the door frame. "Uncle Roy!" She said excitedly, "I remember what happened next!"

"Okay, tell me the rest of the story." He said as he lifted her up and plopped her on the bed. Her chibi feet dangled off the side of the bed as he untied her shoes and she began to tell him the story's finale.

"After the prince and the pretty guard lady fell in love the king told them they couldn't get married because only princesses were allowed to marry princes. The prince and the guard lady were really sad, but then the guard lady heard about another ask-a-sin that wanted to kill the king. The guard lady knew that if she just let the ask-a-sin kill the king then the prince could become king and change the rules so they could get married, but the guard lady didn't want the king to die, so she waited really quiet in the king's room and stopped the ask-a-sin. The king was so happy that he told them that they could get married. Then they got married and convinced the king to be nice to the people and everyone was happy forever. The end!" Elysia said, finishing with a flare.

'_If only real life were so simple…_' Roy thought sadly.

"Did you like the story Uncle Roy?" she asked. He nodded, "Yes, it was a very nice little story." He finished tying her first shoe and tried to get the other shoe on.

"When are you and Miss Riza going to get married?" Elysia asked.

Roy's eyes widened, but he quickly regained his composure. "Who told that we were going to get married?"

"Nobody," She said, "but you love Miss Riza…and Miss Riza loves you. She said that sometimes you can't marry the people you love, but I think she's just being silly."

"She's right Elysia, sometimes you can't marry the people you love. It's against the rules of my work to get married to Miss Riza." Roy explained.

"But _why_." She said, her voice beginning to whine. "Those are silly rules!"

"You'll understand when you're older Elysia. Rules are important things. Without them, there's chaos. The rules are there to protect people…the needs of the many outweigh the wants of the few…" Roy said, though he didn't really expect the child to understand the weight of the statement, but maybe she would grasp its meaning when she was older.

"What does that mean?" she said, realizing his serious tone, understanding that what he was saying meant something to him.

"It means that sometimes you have to do things for other people first because that's what is most important, even if it means you can't have something _you_ want." The child nodded as if she understood. Roy smiled at her. She seemed to really want him and Riza to be happy. "Don't worry Elysia; someday we might get married…"

She smiled, her hope restored. "That's good, you'd make a good daddy."

Roy raised an eyebrow at the statement. "What do you mean?"

"You tied my shoes just right. Not too tight and not too loose. You even did the bunny ears like my daddy used to do."

Roy smiled widely, "Well it was your daddy that taught me how to tie _my_ shoes." The two grinned at each other. A door slammed and the sound echoed through out the house. "Miss Riza's back" he said as he picked up the small child and put her on his hip. Riza met them in the living room with Black Hayate and he handed Elysia over to her and went back into Riza's bedroom to get his shirt. Roy came from the back room and they all headed out to the car. "Riza, would you mind if we stopped by my apartment, I want to change clothes and grab a shower." Roy mentioned.

Hearing her name from his mouth surprised her bit, but she couldn't help but smile. She had never really been that happy about her name, but hearing it from his lips made her name sound like a song. "Of course, Sir. We have plenty of time before the party." She replied as she put Elysia and Black Hayate in the back seat.

Roy fought back an exasperated sigh. She was still calling him "Sir"…he couldn't remember the last time she'd used his first name. Here he was trying to be open with her and get to at least a first name basis and she was still playing soldier dishing out "Sir"s.

"Why are you still calling him Sir?" Elysia interjected. If these two were ever going to get married they were going to need her help.

Riza blushed a bit. "He's my boss, I'm not supposed to call him by his first name."

"Well it's not right if he calls you Miss Riza and you call him Sir…it sounds funny." Elysia said. Riza looked at the Colonel uncomfortably, she was about to ask him if it would be all right but he interrupted her. "Go on, _Miss Riza_, call me my first name…unless you've forgotten after all these years."

Riza looked at him with a slight smirk, "Like I could ever forget your name, _Roy_." Just saying his name lightened her mood. It felt so sinful to finally get to use his name after so long. It was something she'd only dreamed of…it was strange, but it seemed the past 24 hours had been a dream…


	15. Similarities

The Wants of the Few

Disclaimer: I own nothing

Chapter 15 – Similarities

The ride to Roy's apartment didn't take long and soon Riza found herself on his doorstep. Though, nothing could prepare her for what she found inside. The entire place reeked of leftovers, mold, unwashed clothes. The two females glanced around his living room with disgust. Several military uniforms and dress shirts decorated the floor and furniture. What part of the floor wasn't covered in clothes was covered in books and loose pieces of paper. Most of the books were alchemy oriented and several of the papers had circles drawn on them. Black Hayate tenderly sniffed at a discarded uniform and sneezed loudly. This place could definitely use a woman's touch. As Roy went into his bathroom to take a shower Riza wandered around the apartment picking up clothes and straightening furniture. In her cleaning she found several clean pieces of paper and a pencil and let Elysia sit at the table and draw while she tried to fix the apartment up a bit. After just a few minutes she had the front room picked up and most of the kitchen clean. She wandered her way into the bedroom. The hairs on the back of her neck stood to attention as she entered his room. It smelled smoky. Like the front room there were several piles of clothes lying on the floor, Riza began picking them up and folding them. The sound of the shower continued in the background. When she'd finished folding the clothes, she put them on the bed and glanced around for something else to straighten. The nightstand caught her eye. Assorted items littered his nightstand and she carefully inspected each of them. The most prominent piece that caught her eye was the sleeping pills. She read the label, the prescription was dated a week or two after Maes death... Those weeks after the murder had been so hard on him…she would have given anything to have been able to comfort him then. At the time, she wasn't sure he'd have let her.

The nightstand had a drawer and she opened it to put all of the little odds and ends into, but something stopped her. Just inside the drawer was a familiar face. It was a photo of Riza. In the photo she was bent over a ledger, hard at work. It was taken at an angle and she could only see part of her face. It was strange. It appeared as if someone had snapped the shot in attempts to keep her from noticing. She couldn't remember ever having her picture taken…well at least not since that day the entire unit had their group photo taken. As Riza tried to think of when it was taken, the shower turned off. Riza didn't notice. She flipped the photo over and read Maes' familiar handwriting on the back '_She's not as cruel as she seems…_'

"It's not the best photo…" a voice said from behind her. Her breath choked her. Slowly she turned around to see Roy dripping wet in only a towel. "We've got to stop meeting like this." He said seductively as he pulled her to him and gently took the picture out of her hand. She was too stunned to really say anything. It seemed today they had a flare for being in the most awkward situations. Riza's breath had still failed to come back to her as his face slowly moved toward hers. His lips pressed themselves to hers and his tongue lightly caressed the inside of her mouth. Riza had forgotten how good this felt. After only a small taste in her bedroom, she'd forgotten how complete she'd felt. The feeling rushed back to her and filled in all the empty spaces in her soul. He enveloped her completely and she found herself being pushed gently backwards…toward the bed. She couldn't think…her mind was in a blissful fog. Suddenly she was broken away from his kiss as the back of her legs hit the bed and she fell back onto it. She looked up at Roy from where she lay on the bed, a sly smile on his face. She couldn't help but smile back at him as he leaned over her, as if to kiss her again. His lips stopped just centimeters from hers, "I'd love to continue," he whispered, the breath from his words softly hitting her lips, "but there's a four year old that we've got to get to a birthday party." He gave her a gentle kiss and stood up once more. Riza watched him go back into the bathroom to change. Her heart felt slightly emptier without him, but the memory of his kisses stayed with her and gave her the strength to go back into the kitchen with Elysia.

Elysia looked up from her drawing, "Why are you all wet Miss Riza?"

'_Wet?_' Riza thought confused. The answer came to her quickly when she looked down and saw that some of the water that was still on Roy's body when he kissed her had gotten her wet. She blushed a little, "I was washing my hands and I wiped them on my clothes." She didn't like lying to a little kid, but some things just needed to be explained by a parent.

"Okay." The little girl replied without much thought on the subject. "I drew you and Uncle Roy a picture!" Riza smiled and looked over Elysia's shoulder at the drawing. It was of two blob looking people holding hands. The blob that she guessed was the woman was holding flowers and had something on her head. The man had a big bowtie on that was much bigger than his head.

"See, this is you," she said pointing to the female blob, "and this is Uncle Roy." She pointed to the blob with the bowtie. "It's at your wedding. See you're wearing a really pretty dress and one of those see through thingies on you head and I drew you a bunch of flowers." Riza smiled uncontrollably. "I like Uncle Roy's bowtie the best" she continued, "I wanted to draw Black Hayate next to you, but I'm not good at drawing doggies."

"I'm sure you can draw great dogs." Riza said.

"Do you like it?" Elysia asked, innocence radiating from her eyes.

Hawkeye nodded, "Very much."

"Do you think Uncle Roy will like it?" the child asked.

"I'm sure he'll love it." The woman said, giving the small girl a hug.

"What am I going to love?" Roy said as he walked in the room, towel drying his hair.

"Lookie!" Elysia said jumping up from the table and showing him the picture. "It's you and Miss Riza."

He studied the little drawing for a moment. "Miss Riza looks really pretty in her wedding dress and I like my bow tie." The last comment made Elysia grin. "You can have it Uncle Roy." She said handing it to him.

"Aw, thank you so much Elysia…I'm going to put it on the refrigerator right now." Roy hunted down a few magnets and proudly hung the little picture on his refrigerator. The three stood for a moment admiring Elysia's hard work.

* * *

Need more Royai and don't mind some angst? Check out my new fic "Living on Borrowed Time"its sad, but it's going to take a turn for the interesting soon ;) 

Oh...and I'm still not completely done with this fic...we've got 3 chapters left :)


	16. Motley Crew

The Wants of the Few

Disclaimer: I own nothing

Author's note: The children made up in this chapter were just that, made up. They don't have any real meaning other than I wanted to show the readers that Elysia is a sweet little girl with the ability to make friends with all sorts of people (a talent I'm sure she gets from her daddy). Oh, and sorry about the "sexual tension" bit. I know all of you are dying for some hot royai sex scene...its not gonna happen. Though my very good friend The Air Alchemist has some nice lemony and limey stories :) (check the reviews, she's in there somewhere ;) )

Chapter 16 – Motley Crew

'_Fifteen 'til 10:00_.' Riza drove quickly to Gracia's house. Gracia met them outside. "Oh Riza…for a second I thought something had happened." Gracia said, taking Elysia from Roy.

"Nothing that we couldn't handle, right Riza?" Roy said to her. Leaving the events of the night a little vague to Gracia.

Riza smiled in agreement. It was subtle, but Gracia could pick up a change in them. She wasn't quite sure what had changed, but she had a feeling that Roy had finally realized what she meant about not regretting getting married to Maes. "I'm going to get Elysia dressed in her party outfit, come on in and make yourselves comfortable. The parents should be dropping off their children anytime now." The three adults made their way inside, Black Hayate trotted behind. Riza and Roy stayed in the living room while Gracia disappeared upstairs. They were alone once more. They glanced at each other and smiled. It felt as if there was some great secret shared between them. He guided her to the couch where he and Gracia had slept some of the night before. It felt strange being her with here…especially considering just a few hours ago he'd been dreaming about her right here. It amazed him how it'd only been a few hours ago…it felt as if it should have been weeks ago…years even. She smiled at him as she studied his face. It was strange how just being close to him made her spirits soar. '_Maes was right…he did come around_.' She thought happily. The two felt their faces gravitating toward each other, just as their lips were just about to touch the doorbell rang. They jerked back, afraid that they could be seen. Even if they knew how the other felt, they still wouldn't be able to act on these feelings…they had other responsibilities. Roy got up and went to the door. As Riza waited expectantly on the couch she studied her surroundings. The decorations looked wonderful and Riza was surprised at the good a job they did. As she was reading one of the banners, something caught her eye. It was the telephone…it was unplugged. Riza got up and plugged it back in. '_Well that explains why she didn't pick up when I called last night_.' She thought. It'd been a lucky break for her. She couldn't imagine how to explain to Gracia that she lost her daughter. Suddenly, four little children came bounding in. They all stopped in their tracks when they saw Riza. A small girl with a blonde pony tail came over to stand next to her. "You're pretty." She said staring up at Riza. Hawkeye blushed a little, "Thank you…"

"I can see up your nose." A little boy mentioned to her. She directed her attention to the little boy who spoke. He was actively picking _his_ nose. "Um…that's nice." Riza said…a little unsure of what to say. "My name's Susan…what's yours?" said the little girl that told Riza she was pretty.

"My name's Miss Riza." She told Susan.

"I'm James!" said the little boy still picking his nose. "Nice to meet you James." Riza said politely, trying hard to not notice the little boy's disgusting habit. The other two that had come in with James and Susan were two little girls. One was quietly standing behind James and the other was actively investigating the party room. "What's your name?" Riza asked the little girl behind James who was actively petting Black Hayate. The little girl didn't even notice Riza speaking. James did notice, he took his finger out of his nose and said, "That's my sister Allison. She doesn't talk."

"Is she shy?" Riza asked.

James shook his head. "No, she can't hear. She's got to talk with her hands." He promptly tapped his sister and made a few motions and pointed to Riza. The little girl smiled warmly at her and waved. Riza waved back. It was quite a motley crew of friends that Elysia had. At that moment Riza's attention was drawn to Roy who had just come back in holding another child. This one was a sweet little blonde baby boy. "That's my brother." Susan said, pointing to the baby. "Oh, and that's my sister over there jumping on the couch." Riza suddenly noticed the other little girl and ran over to get her off of the couch.

"Oh! You're not supposed to jump on that!" she said as she lifted the jumping girl off the couch.

"You're funny." The little girl said.

"What's your name?" Riza asked.

"My name's Josie."

"Well Josie, you're not supposed to jump on the furniture. I'm sure you don't do that at your house."

"Yes she does." interjected Susan. Roy couldn't help but smile. He'd been standing off to the side as he watched the children more or less terrorize Hawkeye.

"She's not supposed to jump on the furniture here. You have to be nice to other people's things." Riza tried to reason…too bad for her Josie was already off exploring the kitchen. Roy decided it was time to intervene. It was all well and fun to watch the children say silly things to Hawkeye and pester her a bit, but the cake was in the kitchen and he didn't want to have to explain to Elysia why there were finger marks on her cake…besides, he'd spent several hours here last night and he wasn't about to let his hard work go to waste. As he walked by Riza he handed the baby off to her and made his way into the kitchen. Josie was just about to stick a finger into the cake, Roy grabbed her away from it and lifted her onto his shoulder.

"Cool!" Josie shouted. It wasn't often she got to ride around on someone's shoulders.

"Yeah it's real cool; now let's go back in the living room with the others." Roy said as he made his way back into the living room. He half expected to see Riza surround by the children saying more embarrassing things but to his surprise, not only were they not being annoying, they were all sitting really still on the couch. '_What the?_' he started to think but then he noticed Riza's holster was open. Roy wasn't too keen on the idea that she'd actually threatened the children…but whatever she did, it worked. He swung Josie off his shoulder and plopped her on the couch. Riza opened her mouth to say something to Josie but before she could, Josie jumped up and ran over to the stairs. Elysia was standing there in her party dress looking as sweet as Hughes so often described.

"Happy happy _happy_ birthday!" Josie said as she hugged Elysia hard. The little girls smiled wide and the rest of the children jumped off the couch to join them. There were many murmurs of Happy Birthdays and Riza even noticed Allison signing her a message. It surprised Hawkeye a bit that Elysia was easily able to sign something back to her. The rest of the part was just as rambunctious as the first few minutes had been and it continued into the mid afternoon. There were party games and just a few accidents. The most memorable was while Roy was spinning James for pin the tail on the donkey…it was just too bad for Roy that James missed the donkey and tried to pin the tail on Roy's crotch.

It came time to open presents. Elysia opened up several. Many were stuffed animals and dolls. Roy's heart quickened when he saw her reach for the blue square package that he'd seen in the park. Gracia read the tag out loud to Elysia and her face practically glowed. Excitedly she ripped the paper off revealing a glossy redwood box. Gracia picked it up and flipped it over. She showed Elysia how to wind the key and then she set it back on the table. Elysia's face radiated an innocence only found in children. She carefully lifted the lid, the quiet tune of "Hush Little Baby" began playing. It echoed through the house and not a soul breathed. The little girl smiled with amazement. The three adults looked on, tears threatening each.


	17. Who Will Remember?

The Wants of the Few

Disclaimer: I own nothing

Author's note: Short chapter, but sweet.

Chapter 17 – Who Will Remember?

Finally around 4:30 Elysia's motley crew of friends were picked up by their parents. Roy and Riza collapsed on the couch completely exhausted. Gracia was in the kitchen cleaning up the remainder of the cake and Elysia was quietly playing on the floor with a few of her new toys. Roy watched the child with fascination. Children were such interesting things…'_even if they are sometimes a little dangerous…_' Roy thought remembering the pain in his groin. After playing with a large doll, Elysia stopped and picked up her music box once more. She carefully wound the key and opened the box again, silently watching the gears within the box turn. By this time Riza was also watching her. Elysia's eyes seem to glaze over and she was transported to a different time. After a few minutes it wound down and she came out of her little trance and closed the box. She seemed much happier now and began playing with the large doll again.

"Elysia?" Riza said, interrupting the small child's play. Roy was a little surprised, they'd all been so quiet it was strange to hear a voice.

"Yes Miss Riza?" Elysia said, turning to face her.

Riza took a moment to gather her thoughts…painful memories rushed back to her. "Do you ever get sad thinking about your daddy?" Riza asked, her own father's death coming back to her.

Elysia thought about the question seriously for a while. After several moments Riza was afraid she'd over stepped a boundary, but then the little girl spoke up, "Sometimes…but it makes me even _more_ sad when people don't talk about him. They try to pretend that he never died…that he never lived." Elysia seemed to be saying it all to the floor, but then she looked the two adults in the eye, "I miss him a lot, but when Uncle Roy tells me stories about him and I get to see pictures of my daddy…its like he's here with me again. I don't think my daddy would want people to be sad. I think he'd want us to be happy when we remembered him. I hated it when everyone stopped talking about him…everybody's been so quiet so long, I'm afraid I'm going to forget him…I don't want to forget him." Small tears pricked the sides of Elysia's eyes at the thought of losing her father's memory.

Roy's heart caught in his throat. Everyone _had_ stopped talking about him. Everyone had tried to pretend that everything was fine…but it seemed that his memory was forgotten…all the hard work and memories Maes had helped create were stripped from the record, the only exception being locked within the memories of the people that he'd touched.

"Yesterday, you cried when your Mother left you at my house…why do you cry for her, but not your father?" Riza asked…she felt meddlesome asking so many questions, but there were so many questions left unanswered.

"I don't want her to die…" She said honestly, "Not like Daddy did. I never got to say goodbye to Daddy. Besides, if Mommy leaves…who will be there to help me remember Daddy?" she asked, her innocence seemed to penetrate the room and fill it…Riza couldn't breathe. She was amazed…it wasn't Maes' death that weighed heavily on the child…it was the responsibility of being the only one that was trying to keep his memory alive. The girl's words echoed in her head once more, '_Besides, if mommy leaves…who will be there to help me remember daddy?'_ She couldn't help but risk a small sidelong glance at Roy, "We will." She replied out loud. Elysia could only smile.

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Only one more chapter...stay tuned :)


	18. Like an Angel

The Wants of the Few

Disclaimer: I own nothing

Author's note: The thought Riza has at the end is her thinking back to something Hughes said while he was alive…and yes he did actually say it in the show. The song "Hush Little Baby" doesn't belong to me and I don't know who it does belong to…if this gets deleted because of it, I'm going to be royally pissed.

Chapter 18 – Like an Angel

"Okay Elysia," Gracia said as she came out of the kitchen wiping her hands on a dish cloth, "what do you want to do now?" she asked, deciding to let the birthday girl decide whether they went out to eat or just stayed home.

Elysia thought for a moment, and her answer surprised everyone there. "I want to go show daddy my music box!" Everyone in the room seemed to stop breathing for a moment while Gracia attempting to think of a way to respond. Elysia continued, "I need to tell him thank you, besides I think he'd be mad if he didn't get to see me on my birthday." Elysia was smiling, it seemed that she was looking forward to getting to visit her father after her little conversation with Roy and Riza. Gracia finally got her emotions under control and said, "You're right, daddy would be mad at me if I didn't bring you by."

Elysia nodded in agreement, "Can we bring daddy some flowers too? I think it'd make him happy." Gracia nodded, tears threatening to flow.

They got their coats on and all of them piled into the car. Riza drove slowly to the cemetery. She was a little shy about going to the grave again…she hadn't been there since the day of the funeral. She glanced at Roy, his face seemed stoic enough, just like the good little soldier he'd been taught to be. His face had been stoic the day of the funeral too…it wasn't until they were alone that he let even one tear fall. Even then he wasn't ready to admit he missed Maes…Riza wondered what he was thinking.

Roy stared ahead, lost in thought. The day in the park with Gracia…he'd been annoyed to say the least. The anniversary of Maes's death was coming up fast and until a few hours ago…he'd been angry. He hated himself for it, but he felt like Maes had left him. He'd promised Roy that he'd help him to the top…but how can someone dead help him get anywhere now? '_He got me farther than I thought he could…_' Roy suddenly realized. He ventured a glance at Riza. '_Maes planned this all along…that was why he wrote those things on the back of those photos…he knew that eventually, military or not she was my other half…He knew that I couldn't deny myself of her forever…despite the needs of the many._' Maes might not be there now, but his presence could still be felt. His memory lived on in his friends and family. Elysia's reflection caught his eye in the rear view mirror. She smiled widely at him. '_She's so much like her father…_' he thought to himself. It suddenly occurred to him why she'd been pushing him and Riza to get married… '_She's _just_ like her father, she wants everyone to be happy…_'

The car came to a slow stop and the brakes squeaked slightly. The sound echoed throughout the cemetery. It felt as if they were the only people in the world. "Riza?" Gracia said as she got out of the car. "Can you and Roy take Elysia over to her father? I'm going to get the flowers out of the back." She explained. Riza nodded, she had a feeling that Gracia wanted to be alone more than she wanted to get the flowers out of the car. Riza took a hold of Elysia's right hand and Roy took the child's left and the three walked hand and hand toward Maes' grave.

"Hi daddy!" Elysia said as they walked up to Maes' grave on the hill. Immediately the child sat down next to the headstone and proceeded to tell her father about her day. "-and then James dropped his cake all over Susan's shoes and she cried, but then Black Hayate started licking it off her shoes she started laughing again. Oh yeah, I almost forgot! Thank you for my music box. Mommy said that you made sure the man at the store made it play our special song." That said the child carefully tipped the box over and turned the key. She gently put the box down in front of the headstone and opened the lid. The quiet tune of "Hush Little Baby" began playing out across the cemetery. Roy and Riza suddenly felt as if they weren't alone anymore. Somehow if felt as if a thousand souls were listening too. Riza felt a ball form in the back of her throat as the little girl began to sing,

"_**Hush, little baby, don't say a word.  
Papa's gonna buy you a mockingbird **_

And if that mockingbird won't sing,  
Papa's gonna buy you a diamond ring

And if that diamond ring turns brass,  
Papa's gonna buy you a looking glass

And if that looking glass gets broke,  
Papa's gonna buy you a billy goat

And if that billy goat won't pull,  
Papa's gonna buy you a cart and bull

And if that cart and bull fall down,  
You'll still be the sweetest little baby in town"

Riza smiled, the song fit Maes to a "t". The four year old continued to sing in a sweet voice. '_Maes was right…a voice like an angel_.'

At the base of the hill Gracia listened to her child's mournful singing; a silent tear trickled down her cheek. She'd watched as the three had walked up the mound, it'd amazed her how much they'd looked like a little family. '_Maes always said that if something should happen to us, then Elysia should go to Roy. He wanted me to wait until he settled down to talk to him about it…but maybe now's the right time…_' she thought to herself as she started up the hill with the flowers.

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That's all folks…it's the end—that's all I'm writing. I think I brought everything more or less full circle. I hoped you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it. Thanks readers for all the comments and views! I know some of you glares at The Air Alchemist would really like to know what happens when she talks to Roy, but I think all that stuff would be beating a dead horse...no pun intended. I really don't think I could write a better bit concerning Elysia going to Roy that The Air Alchemist has, so go read her drabble -> http/ its so cute and sweet!

Things you should have taken away from this story:

1. People that die leave unerasable marks on those they love

2. Children say the darndest things

3. True love no matter how you try to resist will always get you in the end

4. As much as I hate to admit it, if something bad happens, share the burden, it makes things easier

and last but not least...

5. The needs of the many outweigh the wants of the few (but just because you can't have something now doesn't mean you might not be able to get it later, like they say, patience is a virtue)

I hope you've all enjoyed this story, I have. I've enjoyed all the comments and I smiled at all the hits. Thanks for a great run and if you still need some Royai, I'm about to update my "Living on Borrowed Time". http/ 


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